A Levels and Aliens
by I-Confuse-Everyone
Summary: Sequel to AS Levels and Aliens. Rose is ready for her A Level year after a fantastic summer. But what happens when she learns that one of her best friends knows her secret? And is her other new best friend really who she says she is? 10DoctorRose COMPLETE
1. Part one

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**Hey, this is a kind of prologue thing, it's not very long. Just a couple of things to note. **_

_**1. I've changed the name of the prequel to 'AS Levels and Aliens' and this story is now 'A-Levels and Aliens'. I'll go back through the prequel and change the titles soon.**_

_**2. After Jessa7 decided to scare me and tell me that despite all my efforts I had spelt Raxicoricofallapatorius wrong (as it's spelt very weird on the subtitles on the DVD) I emailed the BBC and The Doctor emailed me back (honestly) and told me that according to the script editors, it's spelt Raxacoricofallapatorius. So I was nearly right and I have gone back and changed it.**_

_**Enjoy!**_

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

* * *

"Oh my God, it's so beautiful!"

Rose Tyler stood on the top platform of the Eiffel Tower with the Doctor's arms draped around her waist, gazing out at the city of Paris by night. All of the different lights surrounding them were taking her breath away as was the close presence of the man behind her.

"Smile!"

The couple turned their heads and smiled naturally at the camera that their friend Jack Harkness was pointing in their direction. It flashed and Jack leant against the wire fencing.

"It'll be closing soon and we still have to get down," he reminded them,

"Oh, I just want to have another look," Rose said, jogging to another view point, "Oh my _God_!"

The Doctor winked at Jack in amusement and the men patiently waited for their angel to finish. Finally, she was done and grasping the Doctor's hand and linking arms with Jack, she led them to the lift and they began the long journey down.

"I wish it wasn't over," Rose sighed, as they reached the bottom and made their way back to where they had parked the TARDIS,

"It's never over," the Doctor said, slinging his arm around her shoulders, "We can do it again on your next holiday and explore new places on Earth that even I've never been to,"

"Yeah," Rose said, "That'll be nice. I've really enjoyed myself these past two weeks,"

"I'm glad," replied the Doctor, pressing a kiss to her forehead, "How about you Jack?"

"Loved it," their companion said, immediately, "Earth's a lot greener in the twenty first century as opposed to the fifty first,"

"It sure is," said the Doctor, pulling open the TARDIS door and leading the way in, "Humans are only just beginning to destroy the planet now."

Rose didn't reply with her normal sarcastic come back. Instead, she stood in the doorway, staring out at their last destination.

"We can come back, Rose," the Doctor said, walking over to stand next to her, "It's not going to change. Paris will be the same for ages. Nothing happens to it for another hundred years or so,"

"I'd like to come back," Rose said, relaxing against the Doctor and accepting his kiss, "Come on, it's time to go back to reality."

And it would be reality. The past two weeks had been almost dream like for Rose. She simply had to state a destination and the TARDIS would immediately take them there. They'd been all over the world: New York, Sydney, Florida for Disney World, Amsterdam, Switzerland, Venice and Rome, Kenya where they'd gone on a safari trip- a long time dream of Roses' and finally Paris, where'd they'd compared Disneyland Paris to its American counterpart and seen some of the sights. For someone who'd never left the United Kingdom before (not including going into space), it had been pure magic. Rose had loved every second of it; made better by having her two favourite guys in the world along for the ride and she was truly sorry that it was over, at least for now.

But new challenges lay ahead for her; not all of them nice; very few easy. Her A Level year was beginning.

* * *

_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	2. Part two

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**Sorry this is a bit late, I've been really busy and spent a lot of what free time I had writing this fic on paper as I had a brainwave. Thanks to all the reviewers of the last chapter and I hope you enjoy this one!**_

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

* * *

"Have a good day at school, darling!"

Rose, about to step out of the TARDIS, swung around and jabbed the Doctor in the stomach.

"One, it's not _school_, its_ college_ and two, you sound like my _mother_!"

"I feel like it, sometimes," the Doctor grinned, "Go on, or you'll be late."

Rose rolled her eyes. "Tone down on the over protective parent bit, you're supposed to be my boyfriend!"

"I _am_ your boyfriend! Otherwise I wouldn't do this!" He grabbed Rose by the shoulders and pulled her in for a long, deep kiss.

"Mmm," Rose hummed when it was over, "Right, I better be off. See ya later, yeah?"

"Bye."

Rose hugged the Doctor before setting off into the cool September morning. He watched her go until she left the Powell Estate and then he closed the TARDIS door.

* * *

After having a brief tutor group session where they were welcomed back and given a new timetable, Rose set off for her first lesson, which was French. Her timetable was exactly the same as the year before as she hadn't dropped her fourth subject like many of her peers had done. She hadn't seen the point as French was easy enough for her to not cause any additional work.

"Hey Rose, wait up!"

She slowed down as Kirsty caught up with her. They hadn't had time to exchange news in the tutor group session so now was the time.

"You're looking good! Where did you go?"

"All over," Rose replied, admiring the tan she'd acquired over the past two weeks.

"Such as?"

"America," she replied, well aware of the fact that she couldn't tell her friends all the places they'd visited- it simply wasn't possible without the TARDIS.

"Really? Which part?"

"New York and Florida, mainly,"

"Wow, did you have fun?"

"Yup, it was amazing," Rose said, suddenly seeing Matt leaning against a wall outside his classroom. She waved cheerfully but to her surprise, he gave her a suspicious look and turned his head. "OK, that was weird,"

"What was?" Kirsty asked, not having noticed,

"Matt just completely blanked me,"

"Maybe he didn't see you," Kirsty said, "Ask him later,"

"Yeah," Rose shrugged it off. It was probably a mistake.

* * *

Rose met the rest of her friends joyfully at lunchtime when they all crowded onto _their_ bench in the college courtyard. It was a very tight squeeze with eight of them there but they managed. Rose was sat on the back of the bench, completely surrounded by her mates. She was badgered with questions almost the moment she sat down which she tried to answer as truthfully as possible.

"So, where's the Doctor?" Lauren asked, after they'd grown weary of asking her about her travels,

"At home with Jack," Rose replied, missing them and wishing they were here,

"Ooh, how are they?"

"Fine,"

"Is the Doctor going to stay here all year, waiting for you?" Kirsty asked, through a mouthful of sandwich,

"I dunno," Rose said, suddenly realising this fact, "We haven't talked about it,"

"Oh," her friends nodded.

The friends all stayed quiet for a moment, watching other students pass to and fro in front of them. They smiled as they saw the new year twelves trying to look confident but not quite managing it.

"Hey, I just thought. We're the oldest now!" Kirsty said,

"We're gonna _rule the school_!" laughed Lauren,

"Someone's been watching too much 'Grease'," Rose remarked,

"It's a great movie!" Lauren defended herself through the giggling,

"Yeah, haven't seen it for ages," said Rose. She suddenly realised something. "Hey, where's Matt?"

"Dunno," Kirsty shrugged, "Haven't seen him since this morning. Any of you guys seen him?"

The rest of Rose's friends shook their heads.

"It's weird," she said, starting to feel uneasy. "He usually comes over and spends the first part of lunchtime with us even if he doesn't spend the entirety,"

"Maybe he's busy," Kirsty shrugged, "Doing homework or something,"

"It's the first day," Rose said, "Oh well. I got History next with him so I'll ask him then."

The others agreed and they began to chatter about everyday things until the bell rang, signalling the end of lunch.

* * *

When Rose got to her History classroom, she discovered Matt was already there, sitting in the same seat as last year with his head down. She walked over to him and slung her bag on the desk next to him.

"Hey stranger!" she greeted cheerfully, "Missed you at lunch. Did you have a good summer?"

Instead of the "Hi Rose! Sorry I was doing _whatever_ at lunch. My summer was ace, how about yours?" that she expected, she was met with silence.

"Matt?"

Silence.

"What's wrong? Have you gone deaf or can't you speak or something? Maaaatt?"

He turned his head and gave her such a glare that she was rendered completely speechless.

"Alright," she said, slowly, "Have I done something?"

There was no reply.

"'Cause if I have, I don't know what it is so you're gong to have to tell me… Matt?"

He stared at her incredulously for a moment before turning to look at their teacher who was just beginning their lesson. But Rose didn't and couldn't pay attention. She continued to stare at Matt, her mind working furiously, trying to figure out what was wrong with him. Because something was, and Rose didn't like it at all.

* * *

The bell for the end of the lesson and the end of the day for Rose rang finally, startling her out of her thoughts. Beside her, Matt stood up and began to walk away. She hurriedly threw her stuff, higgledy piggledy into her bag and took off after him.

"Matt! Wait!"

She caught up with him half way down the corridor and placed her hand on his shoulder. He angrily shook it off and continued walking.

Suddenly feeling furious, Rose ran after him and pushed him against the wall.

"What is wrong with you?" she hissed.

He glared at her. "You really don't know?"

"No! So why don't you tell me!"

Matt's eyes flashed. "I know, Rose," he growled, "I saw you and the Doctor and that Jack guy leaving the other week in that police box thing. I know your supposed _boyfriend_ is an alien and you go travelling with him all over the place. I know all about it so you'll excuse me if I don't want to hang around with a freak like you!"

With that, he pushed past Rose and stormed off, leaving her standing alone in the corridor, her mouth wide open.

* * *

_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	3. Part three

**A-Levels and Aliens**

**_Here's part three, hope you enjoy and thanks for all the reviews so far. I'm not going to be able to update again until next Tuesday at the earliest as I'm going away on Thursday and it's pretty unlikely I'll update tomorrow. Sorry. _**

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

* * *

Rose pushed open the TARDIS door about an hour later and quietly walked in.

"Hey honey," Jack greeted cheerfully from beside the control panel, "Had a good day?"

"It was OK," Rose mumbled, throwing herself onto the captain's chair, "Where's the Doctor?"

"Under here," came his muffled voice, "Be out in a sec."

Rose waited patiently, hugging her knees to her chest and thinking. After a few minutes, the Doctor climbed out from his pit under the TARDIS and came and stood in front of her. She raised her head to meet his gaze.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Rose lied, dropping her eyes, "I'm fine. Can you ask the TARDIS to put a desk in my room so I can do my homework?"

"I can," the Doctor said, narrowing his eyes and then dropping to his knees in front of her and taking her hands. "Don't lie to me Rose. I know you too well,"

"I'm not," Rose said, not looking at him, "Just leave it, OK?"

"No, tell me," he demanded, gently rubbing her hands with his thumbs, "You're troubled."

Rose finally looked into his eyes and saw the raw love and understanding in them. "It's Matt," she said in a rush, "He says he saw us leaving in the TARDIS and he knows all about you being an alien and he says he doesn't want to be friends with a 'freak' like me who hangs round with aliens." She looked at the Doctor whose head had lowered and whose hands had suddenly grown very still. "Doctor?"

She heard him take in a deep breath before answering.

"He must have done some research on me and then decided to act immaturely and take out his fear on you,"

"Little bastard," Jack commented from where he'd been listening in, "He needs to sort out his priorities."

Rose nodded and squeezed the Doctor's hands to get him to look at her again. "What do I do?"

"Nothing," the Doctor said, "Just act naturally. Don't make a big fuss or blank him. Hopefully he'll come round and see what an idiot he's being,"

"What if he doesn't?"

The Doctor shrugged. "His loss,"

"I hope he does come round. I like Matt, he is… _was_ a good mate,"

"Yeah," the Doctor replied, standing up and pulling her into a hug, "Come on, your Mum came over earlier and she's cooking. Said something about cottage pie…"

* * *

Rose did her best to follow the Doctor's advice over the next few weeks but Matt still didn't speak to her other than the basics or when they were forced to in class. All their friends had noticed immediately and had at first bombarded Rose with questions, many of which she didn't know the answers to herself. Being the good friends they were, Kirsty and Lauren talked to Matt and tried to get him to open up to them. He refused, they reported back, but he did chat with them like he had always done; it was just around Rose that he clammed up. Rose found it very upsetting and, especially in the first few days, she had to take five minutes out and physically stop herself from crying. She was sad that she was loosing a good friend because of what she viewed as the best thing, or the best _person_, in her life: the Doctor. It was in his arms that Rose cried when it all got a bit too much and managed to forget her troubles for a little while.

It was after one of these episodes that the Doctor finally made a decision. It was a Saturday in early October and Rose had been dragged out by Jack and some of her college friends to go to the cinema in London. Jack had cheerfully said that he hoped they were going to see the latest chick flick and that he hoped that the cinema sold toffee coated popcorn. Laughing at the random things Jack came out with sometimes, Rose had collected her coat and bag, kissed the Doctor and they had left. That had been thirty minutes ago.

Now, the Doctor pulled on his long, brown overcoat, checked he had his sonic screwdriver as he always did and left the TARDIS. He knew exactly where he was going, having looked it up in Jackie's telephone directory and A-Z the previous night. He left the Powell Estate and walked for fifteen minutes, passing the pub where Rose hung out from time to time and the road that led to her college, before arriving on a middle class housing estate. He navigated his way through the warren of streets before arriving on Beech Street and pausing. Coming towards him, having just left his house, was Matt.

Quickly ducking back, the Doctor leant nonchalantly against a nearby beech tree and folded his arms. "Hello Matt," he said dangerously, as the boy approached.

Matt stopped and looked at him before scowling. "What do you want, alien?"

"To speak with you," the Doctor replied, calmly,

"Well, I don't want to speak with _you_!"

"That's a shame. I want to know exactly why you're behaving so horribly towards Rose,"

"Rose already knows. Why don't you ask _her_?" Matt spat,

"You know what I think?" the Doctor said, "I think that when you saw the TARDIS disappear all those weeks ago, you searched the internet for information about me- I now wish more than ever that Mickey- the- Idiot had actually done what I asked him too- and you discovered what you've been suspecting ever since I reappeared last June- that I'm not entirely human. And, do you know what else I think? I also think that that information scared you and you're now taking your fear out on Rose. What do you say?"

He looked at Matt who had gone very pale.

"I'm right, aren't I, Matt? And this stupid behaviour towards Rose has got to stop now. I've given you a chance to sort it out yourself but you haven't. So, now I have to step in,"

"What's it to you anyway?" Matt burst out, suddenly finding his voice.

The Doctor raised his eyebrows. "Rose is my life. If she's upset, I'm upset, even the TARDIS is upset! We've suffered weeks of dim lighting thanks to you! Do you know how many times Rose has been in tears these past few weeks because of you?"

Matt shuffled awkwardly.

"In fact, I seem to remember when you first met me that you explicitly warned me that if I ever hurt Rose again, I'd have you to answer to. So now I return the threat. If you continue hurting my Rose like that, you _will_ be sorry."

The seventeen year old boy in front of him swallowed heavily before looking directly at the Time Lord. "I'm sorry."

"Not me you should be apologising to," said the Doctor, shortly.

Matt chewed his bottom lip. "I guess," he muttered before sighing. "I've really been an idiot. It… it _was_ because I was scared. I mean aliens don't exist or nobody believes they do anyway. I couldn't believe what I was reading about you and Rose was caught up in it all and I didn't want her to be, I wanted her to be safe with…"

"You like her, don't you?" the Doctor asked, suddenly realising that he had discovered the catalyst of the problem.

Matt reddened but nodded. "She's just amazing and pretty and intelligent and funny and, well, just great," he confessed,

"I know what you mean," the Doctor nodded, smiling at the thought of his Rose, "She's fantastic."

Matt grinned before freezing as he realised just exactly who he was telling all this too. "I know she's yours," he said quickly, "And I promise I won't infringe on your relationship. I couldn't anyway. You two are so deeply in love that even a blind man could see it. I realised I had no chance last January when she first told me about you and I could see it even then, when she hadn't seen you for over half a year."

The Doctor smiled again. "Don't worry, Matt. And she isn't mine. She belongs to herself." He suddenly turned serious again. "Are you going to apologise to Rose and stop ignoring her?"

Matt slowly nodded. "Yes sir."

The Doctor heaved a sigh of relief. "Thank God. How about you come around to the TARDIS tomorrow morning- that's the blue police box you saw- and you can do it then and then I'll try and explain some of who I am exactly,"

"I will," Matt promised, "Thank you, Doctor,"

"See you then," the alien said, before striding away, leaving Matt to his guilt-ridden thoughts.

* * *

_**OK, how do you think Rose should react to Matt? Should she be all forgiving or cold and harsh?**_

_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	4. Part four

**A-Levels and Aliens**

**_OK, so I lied (sort of). I've found time today to put this chapter up but this WILL be the last chapter until next Tuesday at least. I expect I will be doing a lot of writing over the next few days… airplane travel woot! And we had to fly from Luton which is a two hour drive away! Anyway, I really hope you enjoy this chapter and I'll be back soon! (Isn't that an Oliver song?)_**

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

* * *

The TARDIS door opened and Jack and Rose entered, laughing loudly together. The Doctor stood up from where he'd been sitting and smiled.

"Did you have a good time?"

"Yup," Rose said, hugging him and then leaving her arms around his waist, "It was great!"

"Yeah apart from the fact that Jessa wouldn't leave me alone!" Jack said, grinning,

"You so loved it!" Rose said, "So, what did you do, Doctor?"

"Sorted out a little problem," he replied, exchanging a look with Jack who knew exactly what the Doctor had been doing that afternoon. The ex-Time Agent breathed a sigh of relief as he realised it had been mostly dealt with.

"Oh," Rose said, "Everything alright now?"

"It will be. A few things need to happen first before I'll know for sure,"

"Cool," Rose yawned, "What are we doing for dinner?"

* * *

The next morning, the Doctor and Jack were feeling particularly anxious hoping that Matt would turn up and the whole episode would finally be over with. They both did their best to hide their nerves from Rose and if she did notice anything, she didn't say. At just before eleven o'clock, the Doctor and Rose were curled up on the captain's chair, listening to some music that the TARDIS was playing for them and Jack was idly fiddling with the control panel. Suddenly, there came a knock at the door and the Doctor and Jack looked at one another.

"I'll get it," Jack said, shoving his hands in his pockets,

"Probably Mum," Rose muttered. There wasn't anyone else who visited the TARDIS.

"Mmm," said the Doctor, stroking her hair lightly.

Meanwhile, Jack had opened the TARDIS door slightly and stuck his head out. "What do you want?"

Matt stood there, pale and trembling with a bunch of flowers in his hand. "Can I speak to Rose please… Jack?" he asked quietly.

Jack folded his arms and glared at the boy, secretly enjoying seeing him sweat. "As long as you don't upset her again, otherwise you _will_ be dealt with."

Matt swallowed and nodded nervously. He was glad that Rose had two friends that radiated '_Hurt our Rose and you _will_ regret it_'. She deserved it even if at the moment, it was directed at _him_.

Jack nodded and opened the door fully, taking a step backwards allowing Matt entry.

"Matt?"

Rose's surprised voice reached his ears as he looked around him in awe. It was _much_ bigger on the inside. When he had been coming towards the TARDIS, he had wondered how three people managed to fit inside, let alone live inside it. Quickly refocusing, Matt's gaze landed on Rose's slightly confused face and the warning face of the Doctor, who held her in his arms.

"Hi," he said, weakly, "Um, I just came to apologise for my treatment of you these past few weeks,"

"Oh." Rose stood up and walked cautiously over to him.

"We'll leave you two to get on with it," the Doctor said, gesturing to Jack. Rose shot him a grateful look which he returned with a smile before leading the way out of the control room. Rose turned back to look at Matt, who stared at her nervously.

"I guess I should start with I'm sorry," he offered,

"Why?" Rose's single word could have asked many different questions but Matt immediately knew what she meant.

"I was scared," he confessed, "I saw this _thing_ disappearing in mid-air just after Result's Day and it startled me. I couldn't believe my eyes and a couple of nights later, I was on the internet when I decided to do a search. And then I found this website all about the Doctor,"

"Mickey's website," Rose muttered,

"What?"

"Nothing. Go on,"

"OK, well anyway. I read all this information about him and found out how dangerous he is and I got scared," Matt continued,

"Of what?" Rose asked, raising her voice a little, "You've met the Doctor before! How could you think he was dangerous?"

Matt shrugged.

"He's only dangerous to his enemies and you're not his enemy, Matt! Anyway, why were you so scared that you felt the need to ignore me for over a month?" Rose finished, icily.

Matt winced at her tone and her having put the clues together and worked out the truth.

"I was scared for you," he replied, slowly, "I didn't want you to get hurt so I… I… I don't know why I did it! My stupid brain took the information and decided it would make me ignore you!"

Rose leant back against the control panel with a sigh and chewed on her lip in thought. Matt hovered awkwardly near her, watching her and waiting for her verdict.

"I know why you did it," she said, at last, "Its Psychology. A defence mechanism, I think. You displaced your fear of the Doctor onto me, didn't you? You couldn't be angry at the Doctor as you don't see him so you were angry at me instead."

Matt nodded and looked at his feet. "I'm sorry."

Rose shook her head. "I can't really blame you. It's a natural thing to do according to Freud or something,"

"Good thing you listen in Psychology," Matt joked, lightly, "Erm… are we OK then?"

"Yeah," Rose said, willing to accept his apology. She still wasn't entirely sure about how she felt about Matt at the moment. He had hurt her badly and their friendship might never be the same again which would be a shame.

"I…erm… got you these as a sort of peace offering," Matt said, holding out the flowers.

Rose took them. "Thanks," she said, sniffing them, "Thank God they're not roses. My ex-boyfriends constantly bought them for me and I got so bored of them."

Matt allowed himself to laugh. He was lucky; he had almost bought her some red roses from the florist.

"Oh and the chocolates! Don't get me started on them! My Gran used to buy me some every Christmas and always made the joke that nobody else could have any 'cause they were Rose's. It was funny when I was a kid but when she still did it when I was 15, it got a bit drab!"

Matt's eyes widened. Other than flowers, he had deliberated over buying her some chocolates. Specifically Roses.

"Come on," Rose said, beckoning him over, "Let's go put these in some water."

Unable to believe his luck at present buying, Matt followed her.

* * *

When they entered the kitchen, Matt and Rose found the Doctor and Jack sitting around the table, having a drink.

"Hey," Jack greeted, "Everything alright now?"

"I think so," Rose said, filling a tall glass with water for the flowers. The Doctor didn't own a vase, even after living for over nine hundred years.

"That's good," the man in question remarked simply. He caught hold of Rose's hand. "Come and sit down."

Rose immediately sat down on his lap and he encased her with his arms, leaning his head on her shoulder. They then watched as Matt hesitantly took the seat next to Jack.

"Whatever we tell you in this kitchen goes no further. It's extremely important that you don't tell _anyone_ about us. Don't even talk to Rose about it at college if you can help it," the Doctor said, seriously, staring Matt in the eye,

"Of course," he replied, "I promise."

The Doctor took in a breath. "What do you want to know then?"

"Who are you?" Matt asked, immediately,

"I'm a Time Lord. The last Time Lord," the Doctor said, quietly.

Rose hugged him closer, knowing that speaking about his past and his planet still hurt him deeply. "He comes from a planet called Gallifrey," she said, feeling a gentle squeeze from the Doctor as thanks, "There was a Time War a while back before I met him between the Doctor's people and these creatures called Daleks. The Time Lord's won but it was an empty win as they all died in the process- the entire planet of them- apart from the Doctor. He's been on his own ever since."

"Oh God, I'm sorry," Matt muttered.

The Doctor nodded, willing someone to change the subject. Luckily Jack came to his rescue.

"Where are you from, Jack?" Matt asked.

The Captain grinned. "Oh about 3000 years in the future…"

"_What_?" Matt's astonishment made the three time travellers grin, instantly banishing the tense atmosphere that had been present moments ago.

"He's from the fifty first century," Rose volunteered, "Except we picked him up in world war two…"

"You and all this is so crazy," Matt said, shaking his head in bewilderment,

"Don't worry, it gets worse," Jack soothed, patting his hand before proceeding to tell Matt just that.

* * *

The explanations took a few hours and it was mid-afternoon by the time that Matt felt he knew enough without actually seeing it. The Doctor refused to take Matt time travelling and Rose didn't ask.

"I better get going," Matt said, "I still got some homework to do for tomorrow,"

"Alright," Rose said, standing up, "See you tomorrow, yeah?"

"Yeah," Matt replied, "I'm…erm… sorry you know?"

Rose simply nodded as Jack showed him out. Then, she turned back to her Doctor, straddled him and laid her head on his shoulder with a sigh.

"You OK?" he asked her softly, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Yeah." She paused for a moment. "What is it with blokes apologising to me a lot recently?"

"Maybe you just have that effect on us. We just have to come grovelling to you, our golden goddess."

Rose giggled into his shoulder, "Why'd he come apologise?"

"Maybe his conscience struck him," the Doctor said, airily,

"It was _you_!" Rose breathed, lifting her head to look at him, "You did something… what?"

"I just showed him what he couldn't see,"

"Thanks,"

"No problem. I couldn't stand seeing you upset any longer. I'd given him long enough to get his act together,"

"You don't need to explain. I'm just glad you did it," Rose murmured finding his lips with her own, "Love you,"

"Love you too. My Rose."

Jack peeked into the kitchen but retreated quickly as he saw his companions were busy. He smiled and continued up the corridor to his room. All was well in the TARDIS.

For now at least.

* * *

_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	5. Part five

**A-Levels and Aliens**

**_Surprise! Bet you weren't expecting a chapter this fast were you? My flight got cancelled yesterday 'cause of the Terrorist threats so I'm not going anymore. It's a darn shame 'cause I was going to see some of my family, most of which I haven't seen for at least five years. It annoyed me just a little so blame that for the end of this chapter. And me happening to listen to sad songs at the same time._**

**_Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me_**

* * *

True to his word, the following day Matt stopped his odd behaviour and was perfectly friendly to Rose once again. All of their friends noticed immediately and were naturally curious about what had happened. However after a break time of pestering, Rose quietly told them they had solved the problem and could they not bother them about it anymore. After that, the remaining two weeks of that half term passed quickly and happily. Rose was pleasantly surprised on returning home on the final Friday at just how fast the half term had passed. She walked into the TARDIS, beaming and intercepted the passing Jack for a hug.

"You're in a good mood," he remarked, hugging her back,

"Yep! It's the holidays. No more work for an entire week!" she said, excitedly as the Doctor came in, "Can we go travelling again?"

"Yeah, yeah," the Doctor said, distractedly, rubbing the back of his neck as he always did when he was uncomfortable.

"What's wrong?" Rose asked, suspiciously,

"Nothing," said the Doctor, quickly,

"OK…" Rose replied, letting him know this wasn't the end of it and then left the room.

"You've got to tell her, Doctor," Jack said, "It's not fair. She knows something's wrong, she's not stupid,"

"I know," the Doctor sighed, "It's just difficult. I don't know how she's going to take it."

* * *

Rose dumped her school bag on her desk in her bedroom and fell back onto the large double bed that she and the Doctor usually shared. She breathed out gustily and covered her face with her hands. The Doctor wasn't telling her something and it was very unusual. The couple always shared everything with one another as they knew they could trust the other to keep it a secret, even from Jack if necessary. Whatever the Doctor was keeping from her must be important or serious and she really didn't like it.

"Can I come in?"

Rose sat up with a jerk at the Doctor's voice. "It's your room too," she shrugged.

The Doctor took that as a yes and delicately entered the room and closed the door before lying down next to Rose. She lay back down on her side, propped up on one elbow and looked at him. He stared back seriously.

"What are you keeping from me?" Rose asked, directly.

Her partner gave a wry smile. "Can't hide anything from you, can I?"

Rose shook her head. "I know you too well," she said, "The past couple of weeks, you've been acting weirdly, particularly in the last week. I've noticed you can't keep at anything for a long time, you keep getting bored and you go into sort of daydreams where you just seem to blank out for a while,"

"You're very observant. Would make an excellent detective," the Doctor tried to joke.

Rose didn't smile. "What's wrong, Doctor?"

He sighed and slipped an arm around her waist to pull her closer to him. "I'm getting suffocated," he confessed quietly, "I'm a Time Lord. I'm meant to travel all through time and space, it's in my blood and, well, we've been here for getting on two months now and it's beginning to affect me,"

"So, you want to go?" Rose asked, "Leave Earth?"

"Yes. Don't get me wrong, I love Earth but…"

"…you're not meant to remain on one planet," Rose finished,

"Exactly," said the Doctor,

"So what are you gonna do?" Rose asked cautiously, "Will the travelling we do over my holiday be enough or what?"

"No 'cause we'll be staying on Earth and I need to get back out there amongst the stars."

Rose's breath hitched as she realised the full implication of his words. "You've got to leave me here, haven't you?"

The Doctor nodded his head slowly. "There won't be enough time if we try and fit it in your week off and the only other option is for you to quit college,"

"No," she said, instantly,

"That's what I thought," the Doctor continued, "So, you know what that leaves."

Rose nodded wordlessly.

"I'd make sure I'm back by Christmas, you could ring me to bring me back like your mother did. And we'd still be able to talk on the 'phone," the Doctor offered, "I'm sorry Rose. I've just got to get out of here before I go insane,"

"Too late," Rose muttered bringing a delighted grin to the Doctor's face. He watched her face closely as she mulled it over in her head.

"OK," she finally nodded, "You need to go. I'm fine with it as long as you come back for Christmas,"

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it'll be selfish of me to expect you to stay here all year long. You don't have anything to do whilst I'm at college anyway so I'm not surprised you're getting bored,"

"You're amazing, you know that?" the Doctor said, giving her a quick kiss,

"So I've been told. Is Jack going with you?"

"Yes, he's been feeling it too,"

"OK," Rose whispered, before snuggling closer to him, "I'll miss you," she said into his chest,

"Ditto," the Doctor replied, wrapping his arms more securely around her body, "But we'll have our week of travelling first. Just like in the summer, anywhere you want to go, we'll go there. It'll be fun."

* * *

And it was fun. They first re-visited Australia for the warmth and they had an interesting encounter with a kangaroo, which left Jack with a phobia of them. The Doctor managed to get them seats in the Sydney Opera House, which Rose found to be quite an experience. They enjoyed themselves so much that they opted to stay there for a second day when they tried various water sports.

The next day, Rose decided she wanted to go to Spain and the Doctor, with a mischievous grin, directed the TARDIS to Barcelona. The resulting pillow fight lasted almost two hours and ended with both Rose and Jack sitting on top of the Doctor amidst a sea of feathers. They refused to get off him until he promised to finally take them both to the planet Barcelona, just as soon as Rose had completed her A-Levels and they could travel properly again.

The rest of the week was spent visiting many other places, including a brief and cold trip to the North Pole to show Rose that Santa Claus didn't live there. She was still a bit confused about the Doctor's previous comment about her red bicycle but once again he didn't give her a straight answer.

The final day was spent sunbathing on a deserted beach where no other humans could get to. It gave Rose a chance to just spend some alone time with her two guys before they left her for a while. Most of the day involved them lying in companionable silence, chatting and generally having fun in and out of the water. The Doctor was most indignant to be woken up from his snooze by having a bucket of cold sea water poured over his face and then discover he couldn't chase the laughing Rose and Jack because they'd buried him in a load of sand. Quite how they managed to do that without waking him up, none of them ever knew.

Finally the time came when the Doctor said they had to return back to the Powell Estate. The guys had decided to not leave until the following morning so the Doctor and Rose spent the night in each other's arms, not sleeping very much as they didn't want to miss a moment of one another's company.

The next morning came all too soon for their liking. Rose dressed quickly and the three of them ate breakfast together for the last time for a few weeks. Finally, it was time to say goodbye.

"You take care of yourself, alright Rose?" Jack said, hugging her tightly,

"I will Jack. And you do too," Rose said, her lip trembling as she looked at him, "I'll miss you." She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before hugging him again and then taking the Doctor's outstretched hand.

They walked together out of the TARDIS and stood in the cold November morning.

"Call me whenever you need to," the Doctor said, "You've got the number. Day or night it doesn't matter."

Rose nodded, putting on a brave face but her teary eyes giving her away. "I'll miss you,"

"Me too," replied the Doctor, wrapping her up in his arms, "It's going to hurt so much to not be by your side but I have to,"

"I know. I hope the next few weeks go by really quickly,"

"Yeah," the Doctor said, memorising her face, "I love you, Rose." He kissed her desperately which she responded to hungrily, tears making their way down each of their cheeks.

"I love you too," Rose replied afterwards, "Come back to me soon,"

"I promise,"

"Go on then," she said, leaning in for one last kiss.

The Doctor looked at her for a moment, his eyes seeming to search her soul before releasing her hands, smiling at her and making his way back into the TARDIS.

Rose hugged herself, ignoring her tears and watching through increasingly blurry eyes as the TARDIS began to dematerialise, the engines rasping away.

And then everything was silent.

They had gone.

* * *

_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	6. Part six

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**Hello to Charlotte who's slowly making her way through this series, constantly interrupted by me! Hope you (and everyone else reading) enjoys this chapter!**_

**_Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me_**

**xxxxx**

How she got through her first two lessons, Rose didn't know. As soon as the lunchtime bell went, she walked slowly outside and sat, shivering on their bench, waiting for her friends to come out.

Lauren arrived first and sat down next to her. "I am _freezing_!" she exclaimed, "As soon as the others come out, we are so going and finding somewhere warm to sit!"

"Yeah," Rose croaked out making Lauren instantly turn to face her,

"Hey, are you OK?"

"What's up, Rose?" Kirsty asked, appearing on the scene with Matt in tow. He looked at her pale face in concern.

"The Doctor and Jack have had to go," she explained quietly,

"Oh no! How come?" Kirsty said, sitting on Rose's other side and putting her arm around her shoulders,

"They were getting bored just staying in one place all the time,"

"Are they coming back?" Matt asked, gently, understanding shining in his gaze.

Rose nodded. "By Christmas, they said,"

"Well that's alright," Lauren said, awkwardly, "Christmas isn't too far away,"

"Yeah, I know," Rose sighed, "I'm just really going to miss them."

Her three friends smiled sympathetically.

"You've still got us," Kirsty said,

"Yeah," smiled Rose, glad that she did,

"Guys," Lauren grinned, "I think Operation Cheer Up Rose is in order…"

Rose screamed as immediately all three of her friends began to simultaneously tickle her.

"Stop! Stop! I can't breathe!" she giggled a few minutes later, gasping for breath and trying to get away from her friend's un-relentless hands, "OK, it worked! You cheered me up!"

Kirsty, Lauren and Matt sat back with satisfied grins and waited for their friend to recover, taking deep gulps of air and wiping her streaming eyes.

"God, I love you guys," she announced shortly afterwards, "Hey, who's that?"

Her friends looked in the direction she was staring. They saw a fairly tall slim girl of about their age with tanned skin and dark brown long hair.

"Oh, that's the new girl," Kirsty said, "She's in my maths class. Her name is Zoë or something and she's moved here from somewhere up north,"

"She looks lonely," Lauren commented, "Let's go say hi."

The others agreed and they wandered over.

"Hey… Zoë, isn't it?"

"Yeah," nodded the new girl, "Zoë Ziola. My parents had a warped sense of humour!"

Everyone grinned and then Rose and her friends introduced themselves.

"Nice to meet you," Zoë said,

"So how come you've moved down here?" Lauren wanted to know,

"Erm… my uncle- who I live with- got a promotion so we both moved to London over half term. I'm really lucky that this college does exactly the same courses as my old one so I could just carry on with my subjects," Zoë explained,

"Cool," Matt nodded,

"How do you like it here so far?" Rose asked, in interest,

"London is very big, busy and noisy," Zoë said, "I'm used to the exact opposite but I'm sure I'll grow to like it here,"

"Yeah, I'd guess London does take some getting used to," Rose mused, having on occasion been overwhelmed when returning home after long periods of time travelling with the Doctor,

"You can hang around with us if you like," Kirsty offered, sensing approval from the others.

Zoë smiled. "Thanks! I'd like that. My Uncle will be pleased that I've made friends with you!"

**xxxxx**

The rest of the college day flashed past and after saying goodbye to her friends, Rose trailed back to the Powell Estate, feeling slightly grumpy that she already had two pieces of homework to do. She froze upon entering the Estate and seeing that the TARDIS wasn't there. She'd almost forgotten that the Doctor had gone travelling again. Feeling her heart plummet, Rose sighed sadly and made her way up to her mother's flat where she'd be staying until her real home returned.

"Hi sweetheart," Jackie called from the brightly lit kitchen, "I've made you a cup of tea,"

"Thanks Mum," Rose said, taking it and warming her cold hands around it,

"How was your day?"

"Better than I thought it would be," she replied, truthfully, "There's a new girl who's just moved here and we've made friends with her,"

"That's nice," Jackie said, brushing past her to the oven, "Have you made any plans?"

"Not yet. I thought I'd spend tonight here."

Jackie smiled, pleased to have her daughter with her again. She didn't mind her living with the Doctor inside the TARDIS but it wasn't the same, no matter how many times they popped in. "We could put a film on or something," she suggested,

"Yeah," Rose agreed, "I'm just going to put my bag in my room."

**xxxxx**

It was late, very late and Rose couldn't sleep. She'd tried all the usual tricks of getting to sleep that always seemed to work in books and movies but never did for her. She thought her insomnia might have something to do with the bed. It was the same one she'd slept in for most of her life but it didn't feel like it was _hers_ anymore. Her bed was in the TARDIS. There was also the fact that the Doctor wasn't with her, curled up by her side with her in his arms, chasing away any nightmares and making her feel totally safe and loved. A lone tear rolled down her cheek. She wanted her Doctor. Rose sat up, switched on her bedside lamp and grabbed her mobile phone. With trembling fingers, she keyed in the TARDIS's number and listened to it connecting.

"Doctor?"

"Hey Rose." His familiar tone came down the 'phone and instantly reassured her. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," she sighed, "Just miss you loads,"

"Miss you too," the Doctor replied, "What time is it there?"

Rose glanced at the clock. "Half three in the morning. I can't sleep,"

"Oh I'm sorry," said the Doctor, "How's your day been?"

"Alright considering," Rose laughed, "I made a new friend. She's just moved from up north, she's called Zoë Ziola,"

"Ziola?" echoed the Doctor,

"Yeah, it's a weird name, isn't it?"

"I swear I've heard that before. Just can't remember where," said the Doctor, sounding frustrated,

"Oh," replied Rose, "It's probably a coincidence,"

"Yeah. Now, come on, you need to sleep. Get back under the covers,"

"How do you know that I'm not in bed?"

"Magic." Rose could hear the grin in his voice, "Go on."

Rose did as he asked her, before speaking again. "You're really freaky sometimes, you know that?"

"Yeah, but you love me for it,"

"That I do," she said, softly,

"Sleep now, Rose," the Doctor whispered down the phone, "Sweet dreams and never forget that I love you,"

"Love you too," Rose mumbled, suddenly feeling drowsy,

"Talk to you soon. Bye,"

"Bye Doctor." Rose barely managed to end the call before replacing her 'phone and falling fast asleep, a smile on her face.

**xxxxx**

The next few days passed quickly. Rose spoke to the Doctor every couple of days at the most and he never minded her doing it. He told her that he and Jack hadn't done anything too big and had just travelled to a few places of interest. Both of them constantly told her that travelling wasn't the same without her and they couldn't wait to see her again but they still needed more time. This, Rose accepted with a heavy heart but she knew they, especially the Doctor, were feeling exactly the same as she was.

At college, Zoë had settled in and had become a huge hit. Many people liked her but she still hung out with Rose and her friends. She spent a lot of time chatting with Rose and was immensely curious about her past and the mysterious Doctor. Rose told her what she could which wasn't much. Only Matt knew the full extent and he was the greatest source of comfort -other than talking to the Doctor on the 'phone- that Rose had.

It was about a week and a half after the Doctor's departure and Zoë's arrival when something happened. Rose and her friends had been eating their lunch, slouched against a radiator in one of the college corridors, when some lads from their year that Rose knew by sight but not by name passed and began making fun of Zoë's name.

"Cut it out," Rose had said, sharply, "What's it to you what her name is?"

Zoë had shot her a grateful glance but the boys had ignored her. They had continued teasing Zoë who had finally snapped and screamed at them, using some expletives that Rose imagined even the Doctor and Jack would be proud of. The lads had backed away quickly and Zoë had turned back to her friends, her face still twisted with anger. Suddenly Rose stopped in mid bite and stared at her.

Had Zoë's eyes just glowed purple?

**xxxxx**

_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	7. Part seven

**A-Levels and Aliens**

**_OK, is the divider line not working for other people or is it just me? Hope you enjoy._**

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

**xxxxx**

It must have been her imagination, Rose decided afterwards. A trick of the light or something that caused Zoë's eyes to glow an eerie purple. It was nothing to worry about. But Rose decided to keep a watchful eye on her new friend in the future.

Just in case.

**xxxxx**

The following Saturday, Rose, Lauren and Kirsty invited Zoë out on the town. She happily accepted and they went to see a teatime performance at the cinema before hitting the clubs. Rose took them to one of her old haunts where she used to go with her old mates on a regular basis. She wondered suddenly where Shireen and Keisha were these days. She never saw them anymore, having lost touch.

"Anyone want a drink?" she said, once they had successfully gotten in,

"You got your 'psychic paper' then?" Kirsty asked, slyly.

Rose froze for a moment. "Oh shit! The Doctor has it!"

Her friends burst out laughing. "Hope he doesn't loose it!" cried Lauren,

"He won't," replied Rose, confidently, "C'mon; I'm in the mood to dance."

The four girls tripped onto the heaving dance floor and began to move to the music, dancing together and giggling as girls do on a night out,

After a few songs, Rose noticed that there were some lads eyeing them up from the other side of the crowded room.

"Heads up," she muttered, with a grin.

Upon seeing that they had been spotted, the lads followed them over to a booth along one wall.

"Hey, would any of you ladies care to dance?" one of them asked,

"Sure!" Zoë and Kirsty chorused together before taking two of the lad's outstretched hands and walking off. Lauren rolled her eyes at Rose and they both grinned before she left with the third guy.

"How about you?" the remaining lad asked her.

Rose looked up at him. He looked like he was in his early twenties and was tall and slim and had a cute face and dark hair, the same shade as Zoë's.

"I can't," she said, "I've got a boyfriend,"

"Oh," the young man replied before taking a seat next to her, "My name's Zach by the way,"

"Rose,"

"Pleased to meet you, Rose. So, is your boyfriend here tonight?"

"No," said Rose, regretfully, "He's…erm… out of the country,"

"That's a shame," replied Zach. He paused and then spoke again. "Come on, dance with me! I'm sure your boyfriend won't mind. Plus, he won't know anyway,"

"I can't…" Rose grimaced,

"Please?" pleaded Zach,

"Alright," she gave in, allowing him to pull her onto the dance floor. Looking around, she spotted her friends dancing with Zach's friends. Kirsty, in particular, was dancing very close to her partner.

Suddenly, the track came to an end and a much slower one started. Rose swallowed as Zach sidled closer to her, his hands resting on her hips and his hips moving hers. Rose endured it for a few minutes, wild thoughts chasing themselves around her head, primarily her wish that it was the Doctor she was dancing with, not Zach however nice he might seem and just how _guilty_ she felt doing this, before gently pushing him away.

"I'm sorry," she said, "I can't do this,"

"It's OK," Zach sighed, "Can I buy you a drink?"

"I don't want to put you off having a good time," Rose said, apologetically,

"I can still have a good time chatting with you,"

"OK," Rose grinned, leading the way over to the bar.

**xxxxx**

The rest of the evening passed quickly. Rose and Zach chatted for a while, getting to know one another in between dancing to fast tracks and having a drink. Their friends dropped by from time to time to have a rest and join in the conversation before being whisked away onto the dance floor once more.

Finally at just gone midnight, they decided to call it a night and the eight of them stumbled outside the club into the biting November air. Rose said goodbye to her friends as they staggered away together as they all lived in the same area. She then turned to walk in the opposite direction, walking briskly because it was cold and dark. It was a few minutes before she heard her name being called.

"Hey Rose, wait up!"

Zach caught up with her and smiled. "Can I walk you home? You seem to be going my way,"

"If you want," Rose shrugged,

"OK." Zach took her arm and they continued walking down the road, chatting a little until they reached the Powell Estate.

"This is me," Rose said, stopping, "Thanks for walking me back,"

"It's no problem. So, are you going to be at the club again next Saturday? Me and my mates will be,"

"We might do, yeah," Rose nodded, "Right; I'm going to bed now. See you around,"

"Bye Rose." Zach dithered before suddenly darting forward and kissing her on the cheek.

Rose put her hand on her cheek as she watched him jog off.

Great, now she felt _really _guilty.

**xxxxx**

_This is stupid._

Rose buried her face in her hands, sighing heavily. She was sitting in her room at her desk at ten o'clock on the following Wednesday night, trying to make sense of her History coursework. None of it seemed to make any sense and phrases in the textbook kept blurring and merging into one another. On top of that, she had a dull ache in her stomach that she'd had ever since the Doctor had gone but it seemed to be worse tonight. And then there was the sharp guilt in her gut that had been tearing at her for four days. Rubbing her eyes furiously, Rose stared at the paper in front of her, willing the answer to just appear. But it didn't. She let out a frustrated groan.

"Rose? Are you alright?" Jackie called, tapping on her door,

"Mmm."

Her mother opened the door and came and stood next to her. "How's the essay coming on?"

"It's not. Doesn't make sense," Rose muttered,

"Why don't you leave it until tomorrow then?"

"I can't. I need to get it done tonight to stay on track," Rose said, her voice frustrated,

"Sweetheart, just take a break,"

"I _can't_!" Rose yelled, suddenly cracking, "Just leave me alone!"

She slumped down; resting her head on her folded arms as her shoulders shook from her silent sobs. She heard her Mum leave the room and felt even worse.

"Here," said a warm and gentle voice, a few minutes later.

Rose lifted her head to see Jackie holding out the 'phone. She heard a tinny voice coming from the ear piece so she took it. Her mother patted her on the shoulder and left her to it.

"Rose?"

"Hi Doctor," she said quietly, instantly recognising that voice,

"What's wrong, angel?" the Doctor asked, softly.

Rose felt tears pricking at her eyelids. "I dunno," she muttered,

"Bet you do."

Rose grunted.

"We're going to come home as soon as possible," the Doctor said, changing the subject, "We're just going to make one last stop and then we'll be together again. I really miss you,"

"Yeah," whispered Rose, her voice breaking,

"Is that what's making you feel so bad?" the Doctor asked,

"I guess,"

"And the rest. What else could make my fantastic and beautiful Rose who's constantly smiling and cheerful feel so low?"

"Coursework," Rose admitted, "I'm just finding it really difficult,"

"What's it on?"

"Golden Age of Spain," Rose said in disgust.

The Doctor laughed. "The minute I'm back, I'll go through it with you, I promise. I know that period really well, first hand experience. Made _great_ friends with Ferdinand and Isabella!"

"Why am I not surprised?"

"So it that it or is there something else bothering you?"

Rose thought for a moment. There was the whole Zoë's glowing eyes business. Should she mention that to the Doctor or wait and see if it happened again? And then there was Zach…

"Me and my friends went to a club last Saturday and we chatted up by these lads…" she began haltingly,

"Right," said the Doctor, a slight edge to his voice,

"Yeah, and I met this guy called Zach and we danced and chatted for a bit and he walked me home and then he… he… he kissed me on my cheek," Rose confessed, "An' ever since, I've just felt so guilty even though it was nothing, just friendly an' all an' I told him I had a boyfriend even though I think you're much more than that an'…"

"Rose, calm down," interrupted the Doctor in a soothing voice, "Don't worry about it. You said it was just a friendly thing and I believe you. Besides, I'm not surprised this Zach's taken a shine to you. You're very beautiful."

Rose breathed out in pleasure and relief.

"Are you feeling better yet?"

"Yeah," she nodded, feeling as if her soul had been cleansed. "I guess it was all getting to me. Thanks,"

"No problem. Now, I want you to put away your work, drink the mug of tea that I've asked Jackie to make you and then go to bed. Stop worrying about everything and just relax or I'm gonna have to give you one of my special massages."

Rose shivered. "I like your special massages," she giggled, "Anyway; I will do as you say. Seriously, what would I do without you?"

Her love chuckled. "I'll see you soon, my angel. Hopefully, we'll be back in about a week your time if not sooner,"

"Great!" Rose said, feeling a lot happier, "Love you loads,"

"Love you more!" the Doctor teased.

Feeling much more cheerful, Rose hung up after saying their goodbyes and went into the living room.

"Thanks Mum," she said, giving Jackie a hug, "That was just what I needed,"

"Just what the Doctor ordered, eh?"

Rose groaned at her mother's terrible pun and took the offered cup of tea with a contented smile.

**xxxxx**

Saturday night arrived with a bang and before she knew it, Rose was meeting up with her friends and Zach plus his mates. They spent the evening in much the same way with the group dancing together to fast tracks and when a slow song came on, Rose trailing off to find a free booth and Zach either following her or finding someone else to dance with.

A couple of hours after they had arrived, Rose was sitting chatting to Zach when she noticed that Zoë seemed to have disappeared off the dance floor, complete with the lad she had been dancing with. Thinking that she was probably making out with the lad in a dark corner or something, Rose ignored it and took another sip of her drink.

A further ten minutes passed until Rose felt nature calling. She excused herself and slipped to the Ladies. Once she had relieved herself, Rose stood next to the open window in order to get some fresh air on her hot face. Suddenly, the sound of a petrified scream ripped through the cold night air, making Rose jump. She listened, her breath catching in her throat, and she then heard some frantic shouts.

"No! Get off me! I said _no_! Someone, please help me!"

Rose gasped suddenly as she recognised the voice. It was Zoë!

She sprinted as fast as her clunky high heels would allow her, out of the toilets, past a startled looking Zach and outside. She quickly located Zoë, who seemed to be struggling with a man. In an incredible moment of bravery and pure foolishness, Rose charged at the mysterious guy and head butted him.

"Leave her alone!" she screamed in rage.

Suddenly, Rose felt hands grab her arms and tug them behind her back, effectively trapping her. Twisting her head, Rose's eyes widened as she saw it was Zach who was holding her.

"Zach? What are you doing?"

"I'm so sorry, Rose," said Zoë, softly.

She turned her head back just in time to see Zoë's eyes glow purple once again and her attacker, who bore an uncanny resemblance to her, putting his arm around her waist, his eyes also glowing.

Then everything went black as Rose slipped into unconsciousness.

**xxxxx**

**_Aha and now the 'second' plot is beginning... I need names beginning with 'Z', particularly male names if you have any bright ideas!_**

**_Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received_**


	8. Part eight

**A-Levels and Aliens**

**_Alrighty then! Here's the next chapter. Hope you like. I'm not too sure about when the next chapter will be as I have AS results tomorrow (coincidentally for exactly the same subjects as Rose except my French result will probably be the other end of the grade table!) and then I'm off on hol for a week on Saturday. So.., you might have an update on Friday but no promises. Hi to Charlotte who the ending is for as she didn't like the last one (nor did a lot of you according to the reviews!)_**

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

**xxxxx**

When Rose awoke, it was all dark save for a patch of moonlight coming through a small window, high up in the stone wall. Realising that her arms and feet were numb, she stood up with great difficulty from the cold, bare floor and winced in pain as pins and needles suddenly erupted in her limbs. Tentatively rubbing her arms and shaking out her feet, Rose peered around the darkened room. There was nothing in the room apart from some steep steps leading up to a thick wooden door and a bare light bulb, hanging way above her head.

Suddenly, the light flicked on causing Rose to screw up her eyes from the brightness. She heard a lock being undone and the door opened without a sound.

"Hello Rose."

Rose stared up the steps and saw Zoë and Zach coming towards her.

"What's going on?" she demanded,

"We have you," said Zach, staring straight at her,

"Why?"

"We need your Bad Wolf abilities."

Rose felt the bottom fall out of her stomach. She and the Doctor had talked about what had happened just before he regenerated and he had told her the little that he understood and some of his theories and speculations. Rose didn't like the whole idea but she knew it was a great power that she wasn't sure how to use.

"Why?" she asked again,

"We want Bad Wolf to resurrect our species after their unneeded deaths in the Time War- a war that coincidentally had only one known survivor- your precious _boyfriend_!" Zoë spat,

"I can't do that. I don't know how!" Rose said, her voice rising, "How do you know about Bad Wolf anyway?"

"We have heard the legends from long ago and looked further into it. Imagine how surprised we were to discover that the mighty Bad Wolf was a mere human _girl_. But that made our plans, oh, so much easier," Zach said, softly,

"Yes, how easy it was to implant myself into your college and win the trust of you and your friends," Zoë said, with a sneer, "A little more planning and Zach was suddenly on the scene, gaining your friendship while amplifying mine with you, so much that the minute you heard me in danger, you came running to help your _poor, defenceless friend_. It was almost too easy, Rose,"

"How could you?" Rose whispered, "Did none of the good times we had mean _anything_ to you?"

"No," Zoë snapped, "Now are you going to help us?"

"No," replied Rose, "I told you I don't know how and even if I did, I wouldn't help you,"

"You lie," hissed Zach, angrily.

Rose just blinked at him.

"Right, well maybe a nice stay in here for a couple of days will change your mind. Good luck Rose."

With that, the two aliens whom Rose had believed to be her human friends marched out. The light snapped out suddenly plunging her into darkness once more.

"Oh Doctor," Rose whispered, her bravado disappearing now that she was alone again, "Please help me."

**xxxxx**

At nine o'clock the following morning, Jackie Tyler was disturbed from her Sunday morning lie in by a great rapping at the front door.

"Alright, alright, I'm coming!" she grumbled, tying the sash of her dressing gown and opening the front door.

"Sorry to disturb you so early, Mrs. Tyler, but is Rose in?"

Jackie frowned at Rose's friends- Kirsty and Lauren she thought they were called. "No, she sent me a text last night to say that she was sleeping over at one of her friend's houses,"

"Oh, thank you," Lauren said, "Sorry again."

The two girls turned to leave and Jackie closed the front door. She'd make herself a cup of tea and some hot, buttered toast and go back to bed. And then there was that nice, romance novel that Tina down the landing had lent her… She was ready for a nice peaceful day.

**xxxxx**

Meanwhile, Kirsty and Lauren had got to the bottom of the stairs and were talking anxiously.

"It's really odd,"

"I know. Do you think she's at Zoë's? Or maybe Matt's?"

"Hey! Kirsty! Lauren!" yelled a voice,

"Matt, hi!" Kirsty cried as their friend ran panting up to them, "What are you doing here?"

"Going to see if Rose is in. I need some help with my History and she said to pop in over the weekend."

The girl's faces fell slowly. "So Rose didn't spend the night at yours?"

"Nope," Matt replied, blushing, "Why?"

"She disappeared from the club last night without telling us. Zoë did as well but it's really not like Rose. She always tells us if she's leaving early," Lauren explained, "We wanted to check she was OK and we couldn't get her on the 'phone."

Matt scratched his head. "Have you tried Zoë's? If they disappeared together, chances are she'll be there,"

"We're going there now. We just thought we'd see if she was at home first," said Kirsty, "You coming with us?"

"Alright," replied Matt, "Let's go."

**xxxxx**

Ten minutes later, the trio arrived outside Zoë's house. It was a big, old Gothic looking house, completely detached from the other grand houses on the street and bordered by a thick, tall hedge.

Matt whistled, having never seen it before. "Zoë's uncle must be rich!"

"She said they got it cheap," Kirsty said, "'Cause it needed some renovations or whatever."

Matt nodded and rang the doorbell; the loud jangle making them jump. The door creaked open and Zoë peeked out.

"Hi guys!" she said, in obvious surprise,

"Hey," Lauren greeted, "Is Rose here?"

"Erm… nope," Zoë said, innocently, "I haven't seen her since last night when she went off with that Zach guy. Probably had a one night stand with him or something"

"Oh," Kirsty said, her brow furrowed, "We'll probably see her later then,"

"Maybe. I have to go. See you tomorrow," Zoë said, closing the door quickly before her friends had a chance to say goodbye,

"Well, that's that then," Lauren shrugged and then spotting that her lace was undone, "Hang on, I'll just tie this…"

"I'll try ringing her again," Matt said, suddenly, "Something doesn't seem right about this. Rose wouldn't have a one night stand. She loves the Doctor too much."

Kirsty nodded in agreement and watched as Matt found Rose's number in his mobile phone and pressed enter. "It's ringing," he mumbled.

Suddenly, they heard a shrill ring tone echoing from inside Zoë's house, the front door of which they hadn't left yet.

"That's Rose's ring tone!" Kirsty cried, "Why's it coming from in there?"

"Rose must be here," Matt said, quietly, "Zoë's lied to us. I think I'm gonna have a quick snoop round. Keep an eye out for me."

He walked over to the side of the house and carefully peered into the first window he came across. He couldn't see anything as it was gloomy inside. He tried the next window but again, had no success. Suddenly, Matt noticed a small window, set very low down in the wall. Feeling Kirsty and Lauren's worried stares on his back; he dropped to his hands and knees and looked inside.

"Oh my God!" he gasped, upon seeing Rose sitting on the floor, looking bored out of her mind. He tapped gently on the window and watched as Rose glanced up, her face changing quickly from neutral to astonished.

"Matt!" he saw her mouth, desperately, "I'm trapped!"

"Are you OK?" he mouthed back, aware of the fact that he couldn't yell or he'd be caught. The situation had suddenly gotten a lot more serious.

Rose nodded. "Call the Doctor!" she said, putting her hand up to her ear as if speaking into a phone. "Go!"

Matt nodded and flashed her a thumbs up sign before quickly scurrying back to where Lauren and Kirsty were anxiously waiting.

"Come on," he hissed, "We need to get away from here fast."

The girls threw him confused looking glances but followed him as he ran off, neither of them noticing Zoë watching them intently from an upstairs window.

**xxxxx**

"Matt, what's going on?" Lauren panted, as they banged on the front door of Jackie's flat,

"Mrs. Tyler," Matt said, the minute she opened the door, "I need to call the Doctor immediately. It's an emergency, Rose is in trouble!"

Jackie's breath hitched. "OK then, the numbers next to the 'phone,"

"Thanks!" Matt said and ran into the flat.

The girls followed him, their eyes wide.

"Do you know what's going on?" Jackie asked them,

"We're not sure," Kirsty replied, slowly, "Me and Lauren were out looking for Rose as she suddenly disappeared last night with Zoë. Then Matt came along and joined us and we went to Zoë's house. She told us Rose wasn't there but when Matt rang her mobile, we heard it in Zoë's house so Matt decided to have a look around and he must have seen something as he came tearing back to us and told us to run and we ended up here."

Jackie's face paled and then all heads turned towards Matt as he re-entered the room.

"What did you see, Matt?" asked Lauren, almost timidly,

"I saw Rose," replied the young man, "She was trapped in what appeared to be Zoë's cellar. We managed to communicate and she mouthed at me to call the Doctor. So I did. Except…" He shook the 'phone still clasped in his right hand. "No-one's answering."

**xxxxx**

_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	9. Part nine

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**OK, here's your last chapter until a week on Sunday at the earliest- sorry! But I will write while I'm on holiday and probably finish the story- not too far to go now (I think!). Hope you enjoy anyway.**_

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

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The silence that followed Matt's statement was deafening. Nobody could quite believe the situation that they suddenly found themselves in. Rose was in danger- the scale of which none of them were aware of- and the only person who could really help her had quite simply disappeared. Suddenly, Jackie snapped into action.

"Keep trying, Matt. Girls, go and sit down and I'll make us a nice cup of tea. It's saved the world before, hopefully it will again…"

The teenagers obeyed her; Kirsty and Lauren throwing her an odd look. There was something that they didn't quite understand and it all seemed to be centred around Rose. Why had she even been captured, or whatever had happened, in the first place? But something told them that not even Rose's mother or Matt knew the full answer to that.

Meanwhile, Matt had hit redial and he held the phone hopefully up to his ear, only to lower it again thirty seconds later.

"Still nothing," he frowned,

"They must be out or something. Keep trying every five minutes," Jackie instructed, bustling around the kitchen, trying to keep her mind occupied. She didn't want to think about reality too much. Her Rose was out there in trouble and she couldn't do a thing about it.

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Matt shook his head after his eighth attempt proved unsuccessful.

"It's been over half an hour," he said, wiping his forehead of the nervous sweat that had gathered there, "What are they _doing_?"

Jackie shrugged.

"Why doesn't the Doctor have his mobile on him?" asked Lauren,

"His mobile..? Oh! I suppose he must have left it in his… accommodation," Matt replied nervously, exchanging a look with Jackie.

Kirsty crossed her arms. "Well that's a bit stupid. The point of a mobile is to take it with you! Something about this doesn't add up and I know that you know what it is, Matt."

Matt sighed. "I can't tell you, I'm sorry. I promised Rose and the Doctor that I wouldn't,"

"How do _you_ know then?" Lauren asked.

Matt rubbed the back of his neck, an action eerily reminiscent of the Doctor and said nervously, "Look, do you remember back at the start of term when I was ignoring Rose?"

His friends nodded curiously.

"Well, it was 'cause I had found out something about her and the Doctor and it scared me. And what I found out, it's basically that Rose and the Doctor, they're…_special_… and because they're _special_, Zoë and her uncle have kidnapped her. I don't know _why_ exactly; you're just gonna have to trust me on this."

Lauren and Kirsty nodded slowly, still not completely understanding but satisfied for the time being.

Matt suddenly jumped up. "I'm going to go back out and see if I can communicate with Rose again and let her know what's going on,"

"Is that such a good idea?" Jackie asked, cautiously, "These people seem dangerous…"

"I need to, Mrs. Tyler," Matt said, earnestly, "I'll be careful. Keep trying the Doctor and if he picks up, tell him what's happened and to get his arse back here _right now_!"

The others nodded and watched as he marched out of the flat.

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Rose couldn't remember the last time she had been this bored. In fact, she didn't think she'd _ever_ been this bored before. There was nothing for her to do but think and even that had grown boring and desperate now. Her spirits had risen earlier when she'd seen Matt at the window and she'd known help was on its way. But as more time passed, she grew more and more anxious and afraid. Rose knew that the minute Matt told the Doctor that she was in trouble, he'd move heaven and earth to get back to her and he'd come tearing in to save the day as always within fifteen minutes of hearing the news. But over four times that amount of time had passed now. Something must be wrong.

Rose's head jerked up suddenly as she heard a loud crashing and banging coming from the house above her. Wondering what was happening and hoping that it was the Doctor on his rescue mission, she got to her feet and limped over to the bottom of the steep steps, her legs not being used to motion.

The door opened swiftly and three figures appeared; the middle one seemed to be struggling.

"Get off me!"

Rose gasped as she recognised Matt's voice. He was pushed down the steps by who Rose identified to be Zach and Zoë's so-called attacker from the club.

"We bought you a friend," Zach sneered,

"Have you thought about our proposal?" asked the other man,

"The answer is still no," Rose replied evenly, quickly throwing out her arm to catch Matt.

The man growled and walked swiftly out of the room.

"You _will_ change your mind, Rose," Zach said softly, before following him.

Rose exhaled heavily and turned to look at Matt, who promptly pulled her into a hug.

"Are you alright?" he asked,

"Yeah, I'm fine. What happened to you?"

"I came back to see if I could talk to you again but Zoë and her cronies ambushed me on the way to the window. I guess they must have been expecting me," Matt answered, with a shrug,

"Oh," Rose said, "Did you tell the Doctor? Is he coming?"

"He wasn't answering!" Matt exclaimed, watching as his friend's face fell, "I left Kirsty and Lauren with your Mum and they're gonna keep on trying. He'll come, Rose, I know he will."

Rose sighed. "Yeah, I believe he will. I just hope it's soon. I don't think my _hosts_ are going to be patient for very much longer."

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Back at Jackie's flat, the atmosphere had gotten very tense and agitated. It had been almost an hour since Matt had left and the occupants were fearful that something had happened to him as well. The three females were very pale even with endless cups of sweet tea. They had still not had any success with the Doctor, which was beginning to irritate the younger two at least. For Jackie, it only increased her worry that the man or alien or whatever that she had come to like, had also gotten into some sort of trouble.

"OK, it's time to try again," she muttered, breathlessly, picking up the well-used 'phone and re-dialling again. They all held their breath as the line connected and began ringing.

_Three, Four, Five_

Jackie counted the rings in her head, knowing from experience that it cut off after fifteen.

_Nine, Ten, Eleven_

'_Please be there. Please pick up.'_

_Thirteen, Fourteen, Fift…_

"Hello!"

"Doctor!" Jackie gasped,

"No, its Jack… is that you, Jackie?"

"Yes, I need to speak to the Doctor immediately,"

"Alright, I'll go get him…"

Jackie and the two listening teenagers breathed a sigh of relief.

"What's up, Jackie?" the Doctor's curt tone echoed in her ear.

"Rose is in danger! One of her friends- the new one- they've got her and now Matt's disappeared as well!"

The Doctor's breath hitched and Jackie could almost feel his hearts plummeting. "What's the new friend's name?"

"Zoë," Jackie replied, "Zoë…"

"Ziola!" Kirsty hissed, her eyes wide,

"Zoë Ziola," Jackie completed,

"Ziola?" the Doctor breathed, "Rose mentioned that name… it rang a bell… hang on, I'll do a search…"

Jackie waited patiently, listening to the beeping and soft hum of the control panel and the muffled murmuring of the Doctor and Jack. Suddenly, she heard him swear loudly.

"Damn it! Why didn't I do a search the minute Rose first told me?" he berated himself, "This is not good. We're coming back immediately. Stay in the flat, Jackie. Don't let anyone in or answer the door; that is extremely important. I'll be there in five minutes, alright?"

"Yes Doctor," Jackie managed,

"I'll be there, Jackie. I promise. I_ will_ save her."

With that, the 'phone suddenly fell dead and Jackie sank shivering to the sofa. Time was suddenly very much of the essence.

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_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	10. Part ten

**A-Levels and Aliens**

**_Hey, I made it back alive and here's part ten… of many. I did originally plan to finish this story after this incident but then I realised I still had the rest of the year to go in the story and I had a massive brainwave on hol. So now, I'm very sorry but it's gonna be a bit longer than anticipated. I'm sure you're all extremely disappointed. Anyways, I wrote loads while I was away so I have enough chapters to update pretty regularly over the next week- have got a load of stupid college work to do as well though. 'Mutters angrily'. ANYWAY… hope you enjoy._**

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

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The TARDIS materialised in the Powell Estate, the door was yanked open and the Doctor exited at a run; Captain Jack half a pace behind him. The two men tore up the stairs to Jackie's flat and, using his sonic screwdriver, the Doctor forced open the front door. They entered and suddenly ducked as Jackie swung a broken tennis racket at them.

"Jackie, it's us!" the Doctor said hastily,

"Oh," Jackie said, dropping the racket with a thud and hugging him tightly, "Thank God you're here!"

The Doctor released her and looked around, taking in the two relieved faces of Kirsty and Lauren. "I need some more information before I do anything else," he said, collapsing onto the sofa and leaning forwards, his elbows on his knees. "According to the TARDIS databanks, Zoë and her 'uncle'- if that's what he really is- are members of the Ziola alien race. They typically have human features, which makes them very difficult to spot. Does Zoë have straight, dark brown hair and tanned skin?"

"Yes," Lauren said, "I did think it was a bit odd, it being November and all. And England,"

"Yeah," Kirsty agreed. Suddenly her eyes widened. "Hey Zach had those features as well! I wondered if they related or something but they never said anything,"

"Zach?" said the Doctor, slowly, "I think it stands a good chance. All Ziola have forenames beginning with 'Z',"

"Bet that gives them a lot of choice," remarked Lauren, dryly, before pausing a second. "Wait a minute. Did you just say the Ziola _alien_ race?"

The Doctor nodded while Jackie and Jack tensed. "Yeah. Alien race. They exist. Just don't worry about it,"

"Don't worry about it?" Kirsty exploded, "You're telling us that aliens do in fact exist and you say 'don't worry about it'?"

"Yes! Do _not worry about it_!" the Doctor cried, angrily, "Look, I have to get out there and rescue Rose and now possibly Matt..?"

He looked at Jackie who nodded grimly.

"…who are both in an extremely dangerous situation and I do not have time to be explaining things to you! You can wait. Is that understood?"

Kirsty and Lauren both nodded shakily, understanding that the Doctor's anger wasn't because of them. He was furious at the Ziola, worried and scared for Rose, which made him lash out.

"Right then," he said, breathing heavily, "Tell me the whole story. And can you give me directions to Zoë's house? Then Jack and I can go there and sort out this whole sorry mess."

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Ten minutes later, they were hurrying on their way through the cold and windy streets towards Zoë's house- and Rose. The two men had left Jackie behind, despite her protests, with firm instructions to look after Kirsty and Lauren and to not answer the door or come after them, no matter how long they took.

"Have you got a plan?" Jack asked, breaking the uneasy silence.

The Doctor shook his head. "I rarely do plans. I usually work things out as I go along. All I know is we _have_ to get in there and rescue Rose and Matt,"

"What about the Ziola?"

The Doctor shuddered slightly. "They're only dangerous to Rose and possibly me. I don't _care_ what happens to them. I only want Rose safe."

Jack nodded, seeing now more than ever how much the Doctor loved and cared for Rose. "C'mon. We're here."

They walked up the path which was covered with overgrown weeds and paused outside the door, the Doctor fishing his sonic screwdriver out of his pocket.

"I'll just go and see if I can find that window that the girls were telling us about," said Jack, "See if I can spot Rose…"

The Doctor nodded and unlocked the front door with a small click. He cautiously walked in and looked around in the early afternoon gloom. The place seemed deserted but the hairs on the back of his neck prickled unpleasantly. The odd ornament lay around, shrouded in dust, and dark pictures were hung on the walls. About four doors connected the hall way to other rooms and there was a sweeping staircase to the Doctor's right. Overall, the place gave a distinct feeling of not being lived in.

Remembering what Rose's friends had told him, the Doctor deduced that Rose must be being kept in an underground room. This meant he needed to look for a cellar door. He examined the four available doors. Three of them were, what had been at one point, polished mahogany wood and the other was dull wood with, handily enough, a metal key stuck in the keyhole. But the Doctor wasn't stupid. He was fully aware that he might be walking into a trap. Clutching his sonic screwdriver in one hand, he turned the key with ease and slowly opened the door. Peering around it, he didn't see any Ziola about so he walked in, his eyes straining in the dim light.

"Doctor?" came a small voice, out of the darkness,

"Rose!" he said, racing down the steps and swooping down on her, gathering her in his arms and holding her close to his body. He felt her arms encircle his waist and the two lovers who had been separated for three weeks clung tightly onto one another.

"Thank God you're here," he heard her whisper, "I'm sorry I got myself into this situation,"

"It's alright. You didn't know," he told her gently, stepping back and placing his hands either side of Rose's face, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," she replied honestly, staring into his warm brown eyes, "Just a bit cold. I'm still in my clubbing gear."

Looking down, the Doctor saw she was indeed still wearing only a skimpy top and a short skirt. It didn't look sluttish on her- in fact it even heightened her beauty in his opinion. He shrugged off his long brown overcoat and draped it over her shivering shoulders, helping her put it on and then he hugged her again.

"We saw Jack through the window," Rose said,

"We? Is Matt here as well?"

"Yup, I'm here," said Matt, standing up from where he'd been sitting watching them,

"Jackie and your friends were worrying where you'd got to," the Doctor said, "You OK?"

"I'm fine. You gonna get us out then?"

"I'll do my best," the Doctor replied.

Suddenly, the wooden door slammed shut and the lock clicked audibly. Rose and the Doctor looked at each other.

They were trapped.

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Jack slouched against the wall outside and thought hard. When he had first left the Doctor, he had crept along the side of the house until he discovered the small window. The look on Rose's face when she spotted him was just fantastic and it got even better when he managed to tell her that the Doctor was on his way. He left the window, intending on following the Doctor, with Rose's face engrained on his memory. On it was pure hope and love. Jack didn't think he'd ever seen such a powerful expression on someone's face before and it made him feel quite awed.

But then things starting going wrong. He had reached the front door, which he knew the Doctor would have left open for him, and discovered that it was in fact shut. Jack immediately realised that the Doctor was walking into a trap as the Ziola knew they- or at least the Doctor- was here. He hastened back to the window and was partly delighted to see the Doctor and Rose wrapped in one another's arms again and partly worried when it became clear that they were trapped. Unable to see any Ziola, Jack knocked smartly on the window and had to grin when he saw his friend's relieved faces.

"Hello!" he mouthed,

"Jack! Use your sonic blaster!" the Doctor mouthed back, holing his hands in the shape of a gun.

Jack nodded and pulled it out, aimed and squeezed the trigger. A large square hole appeared in the side of Zoë's house where the window and surrounding wall used to be.

"Captain Jack to the rescue once again!" he joked,

"My hero!" Rose said, before receiving a sharp nudge in the ribs from the Doctor. She looked at him, an eyebrow raised. "Oh alright. My _other_ hero,"

"Thank you," the Doctor said,

"Your other, better looking hero," Jack sniggered, "You alright, honey?"

"Yeah," Rose grinned cheekily, "C'mon, let's get out of here,"

"Good idea," said the Doctor, his scowl at Jack's comment disappearing, "Rose, I'm gonna lift you up and you climb out of the window to Jack,"

"No, I want to stay with you,"

"Rose please. They want Bad Wolf and aren't about to let you go in a hurry. This is the easiest way," said the Doctor patiently, "Please? I want you safe,"

"I know you do," said Rose, looking directly at him, "But we're a team. I'm not a wimpy girl who needs rescuing all the time. I fight by your side even if it puts me in more danger. That's the way we've always done it."

The Doctor held her gaze for a moment before nodding. "You're right, of course you are. But Matt's going out that way."

He turned to the young man in question who jerked his head in acknowledgement. The Doctor and Rose linked hands and created a cradle below the gap in the wall, ready for Matt to step onto.

"Be careful," Matt said, before leaping up and grabbing the edge of the hole. Jack pulled him up with his hands and the Doctor and Rose heaved from below. With a final push, Matt scrambled out and stood next to the captain, looking back down at the others.

"Put the wall back and we'll meet you by the front door, alright? Stick together," the Doctor instructed,

"Sure," replied Jack, "See you in a bit." He aimed the sonic blaster and the wall reappeared. The Doctor and Rose heard Matt's high pitched "Cool!" before grinning at one another. The Doctor took Rose's hand, linking their fingers like always.

"Ready to go kick some Ziola butt?" he asked her.

Rose smirked. "With you? Always. Let's go!"

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**_Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received_**


	11. Part eleven

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**Thanks for the reviews. They make me squeal and my Mum wonder's what's wrong with me. Hope you enjoy this chapter- methinks it's the longest yet.**_

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

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Hand in hand, Rose and the Doctor crept up the steps away from Rose's prison, towards the ominous looking door and the Ziola. Both felt braver now they were back together and ready to face whatever life was about to throw at them. The Doctor used his trusty sonic screwdriver to unlock the wooden door. They edged through it and were halfway across the hallway when:

"Stop!"

They spun around, the Doctor unconsciously shielding Rose by partly stepping in front of her, and faced Zoë, Zach and the other male Ziola.

"I don't think so," the Doctor replied, "Give us a good reason why we shouldn't just walk out of that door?"

"We need Bad Wolf," Zach said, leading the way down the stairs, "She must resurrect our species that were murdered in _your_ Time War,"

"It wasn't _my_ Time War," the Doctor growled, angrily, "I lost just as much as you did! More!"

Rose squeezed his hand comfortingly. "And I told you before I don't _know_ how to control Bad Wolf,"

"Honestly," Zoë tutted, now standing right in front of the pair, "Do you know anything, Rose? I always thought you were particularly thick."

Rose's face contorted in anger. "What? You mean thick for trusting you and Zach? 'Cause yeah, I'll admit I was extremely thick for doing that."

Zoë scowled, not having a comeback to that.

"So _Doctor_," Zach sneered, "I can see why you like Rose so much. She's a _great_ kisser!"

Rose opened her mouth in disbelief. "He's lying! I never kissed him!"

"I know," said the Doctor shortly, staring Zach straight in the eye, "I don't like liars. And I really don't like men who think they can go around kissing _my_ girl and then lie about it!" He swung his fist and punched Zach in the jaw.

Zach clutched his lower face, tears in his eyes and wincing. "What happened to the peaceful Doctor that we all know and love?" he asked, mockingly,

"He fell in love," the Doctor answered stonily, "C'mon Rose. Let's go."

Rose let him pull her around and towards the door, proud of the Doctor for his actions and words, only to find it blocked by Zoë.

"I don't think so," she said, quietly, "We're not letting Bad Wolf go."

Rose suddenly lost it. "My name isn't Bad Wolf. My name is _Rose_!" she growled, "And I've had enough of you, _Zoë_. I thought you were my friend!"

"Yeah and mine!" came a voice from behind Zoë.

Rose looked and saw Matt standing there with a furious expression on his face; Jack standing just behind him. They had forced their way inside after waiting a few minutes and then hearing raised voices from inside the house.

"I was never either of your friends," Zoë sniffed, "Why would I want to be friends with two pathetic little freaks?"

Rose made to move but Matt reacted first, running at Zoë and attempting to hit her.

"I don't think so," Zoë said, softly, barring Matt's attack and lashing out with her arm, "Gentlemen never hit ladies, Matthew."

Rose took one look at her friend's crumpled form, his hands gingerly touching his bleeding nose and said, "You're no lady, Zoë." She gritted her teeth and swung her hand, slapping her ex-friend sharply across the face. She heard Jack's whistle and felt the Doctor's wince behind her, him having first hand knowledge of how hard she could slap. "We're going," Rose said calmly, retaking the Doctor's hand and marching out of the house, her head held high.

"You alright, Matt?" she asked, when the quartet had left the property and were a good distance away,

"Yeah, thanks Rose," Matt mumbled, gratefully taking her offered tissue and holding his nose with it, "You?"

"Mmm," Rose replied, feeling the Doctor wrap a supportive arm around her shoulders,

"You were amazing," Jack said, "Good one,"

"Thanks," Rose leant further the Doctor's embrace and the walk continued in silence.

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It wasn't long until they reached the Powell Estate. The Doctor was glad as Rose had been shivering more and more violently as they walked despite the added comfort of his overcoat.

"The TARDIS," he heard her whisper, "Can we go in?"

"Of course." He raised his voice. "Jack, I'm taking Rose into the TARDIS to check her over. You and Matt go up to the flat and tell Jackie."

Jack nodded, understanding that his two friends needed some alone time first. He knew from a few months of knowing Jackie Tyler that she wouldn't let her daughter out of her sight for a long while and the two lovers needed to talk. He steered Matt away, suddenly realising that his respect for the young man had increased as a result of his actions in trying and helping to save Rose.

Meanwhile, the Doctor had let themselves into the TARDIS and he'd packed Rose off to their bedroom to change into warmer clothes. He waited in the Control Room for her return and fiddled with the controls and tidied up a cold cup of tea that had been abandoned in the rush to save Rose.

Five minutes later, he was still waiting so he decided to go and find her. He wandered down the corridor and into their bedroom, where he discovered her lying on their bed, facing away from the doorway, still in her clubbing gear. She'd removed his coat and it was draped over the end of the bed.

"You alright?"

She nodded tightly and he crawled over the bed and lay down next to her.

"No you're not. Did they hurt you?"

"No, just left me there," she mumbled, rolling over and straight into his arms,

"OK," he nodded, holding her tightly, "C'mon, you're freezing."

The Doctor pulled the duvet out from under them and then pulled it up around their shoulders. He then hugged her even closer, staring into her eyes.

"Tell me what you're feeling."

Rose sighed and blinked, not tearing her eyes away from the Doctors'. "Angry, scared and worried but at the same time happy, secure and loved." She smiled at the Doctor before it faded away into a frown. "The Ziola… what do you think they would have done to me if I hadn't gotten out?"

"I don't know," replied the Doctor, slowly, "Before the Time War, the Ziola alien race were known for their brutality,"

"Oh," Rose shivered, "Thanks for getting me out then,"

"Anytime," the Doctor smiled, "I'm really glad to see you again,"

"Me too. I _really_ missed you. I used to think that this wasn't true or just exaggerated but it seriously did feel like I had a hole in my heart or something equally as clichéd,"

"Have I ever told you how much I'm in love with you?"

"Yeah but feel free to tell me again," Rose grinned.

The Doctor grinned back before leaning in to close the already minute gap between their lips. The long- awaited kiss was amazing, sweet and pure. The two participants didn't come up for air for long minutes as they both tried to make up for lost moments of the past three weeks or so. Finally they broke apart with a gasp and then lay in contented silence, happy in the knowledge that they were back together.

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"Rose! Oh Rose!"

Jackie Tyler had run into the hallway and descended upon her daughter, hugging her tightly, before Rose and the Doctor had even managed to get into the flat. They had talked some more on the TARDIS before Rose had gotten dressed into some warmer clothes and they'd made their way to the flat.

"I'm OK, Mum. I'm fine," Rose said, shooting the Doctor a look,

"Yeah Jackie, I just checked her over and there's no lasting damage. She just needs food and drink. Could you go make her something?" he asked.

Jackie nodded, released her daughter and hurriedly made her way into the kitchen.

"Thanks," Rose said, taking the Doctor's hands, "She tends to get a bit overprotective,"

"Don't I know it," he joked, wincing as he recalled the numerous slaps that Jackie Tyler had given him.

Rose grinned before kissing his cheek and then they walked into the living room.

"Rose! You're alright!" cried Lauren and Kirsty together, from where they were sitting on the sofa, Matt in between them, still dabbing at his nose which appeared to have stopped bleeding.

"Yeah," she grinned, "Where's Jack?"

"In the kitchen," Matt smirked, "Go and see."

The Doctor raised his eyebrows at Rose and together they peered around the doorway, only to find Jack standing in front of the cooker, stirring a pan with one hand and flipping bacon over in a frying pan with his other. Jackie was standing next to him, looking bemused while pouring glasses of orange juice.

"Nice to see your kitchen abilities are being put to good use," Rose laughed.

Jack turned, grinning widely. "Rosie petal! C'mere!" He held out his arms and Rose ran into them. "Missed ya, babe," he muttered honestly. Even though he had seen her earlier and her him, during the rescue mission, this was the first time they had actually been able to talk properly, without the constant threat of the Ziola.

"Yeah, missed your cooking even more," Rose replied.

Jack chuckled. It had been such a surprise to one day discover Jack's talent at cooking. He had quietly made the dinner one evening in the TARDIS when Rose had been feeling down because of Matt's cold behaviour and the Doctor had been busily comforting her. They had eaten it and truthfully said that it was the best food they had ever eaten. After that, they got Jack to do the cooking as often as possible. He had told them he had learnt during Time Agent training.

"What're you making?" Rose asked, ducking underneath his arm so she was anchored to his side. The Doctor came and stood on her other side, his arm snaking its way around her hips so she was sandwiched between her two favourite men. She was in heaven.

"Fried breakfast for four pm," Jack answered, "It's almost done. Hey there, gorgeous!"

Matt, who had just entered the kitchen, looked confused and vaguely worried. "Erm… sorry Jack. I don't swing that way,"

"Shame," Jack replied, starting to dish out the food onto seven plates, "Good looking guy like you."

Matt nodded dumbly before scuttling out of the room. Both Rose and the Doctor burst out laughing.

"Can you try not to psychologically scare my friends?" Rose asked,

"Sorry," Jack said, not sounding in the least so, before picking up some plates and carrying them through to the table. "Give me a hand with these? Grubs up!"

The Doctor, Jack, Rose, her mother and her three friends all crowded around the small table to eat their meal. It was a tight squeeze but they all managed it. Whilst they ate, the conversation was light and full of good humour, whether it was teasing someone or just playful banter. Every one of them was glad that things had turned out the way they did.

Rose put down her knife and fork after she was finished, wiped her mouth and turned to the Doctor who she was sitting next to. "What's gonna happen to the Ziola?"

The conversation suddenly vanished and all heads turned to face them.

"Good point," said Matt, "I mean, we just left them there. Didn't stop them or lock them up or anything,"

"There's nothing we can do," the Doctor answered, "I'm fairly certain that they aren't a threat to anyone else, only Rose and myself possibly. And they won't try anything else anytime soon. They now know that Rose is strong,"

"Yeah, and I got a fighting force around me," Rose smiled,

"But what if they do try something? We don't know for sure that Rose isn't in danger anymore," asked Matt, quietly,

"We'll be ready for them. Don't let them stop you living your life, hun," Jack said, looking across the table at Rose,

"Does that mean that Zoë won't be at college anymore?" asked Lauren, hesitantly,

"No and if she is, keep away from her and tell me," the Doctor replied, "She's dangerous."

The three teenagers nodded seriously and there was silence for a few moments before Kirsty spoke.

"Doctor, is now a good time to ask about the aliens thing?"

Matt and Rose stared at Kirsty, not having realised that their friends knew about aliens being real.

"Yeah," the Doctor said, "I can't tell you much but basically aliens do exist and they do come to Earth but its rare that they actually do anything serious,"

"OK," Lauren said, trying to understand and digest this information, "So that thing, Christmas before last, that was aliens and it _was _aliens when Downing Street got blown up and that spaceship landed in the Thames but all the newspapers said it was a hoax?"

"Yep," said the Doctor, "All aliens. But keep it to yourself, yeah?"

The girls nodded, feeling a little overwhelmed and still a little confused. But they knew that they'd be told if there was something that they needed to know. To have the precious knowledge of aliens actually being real that few other people knew was enough. Both Kirsty and Lauren wondered for a minute if they'd actually ever met any aliens unknowingly, other than Zoë and Zach, if they could be alien and yet still look human. It was a strange thought.

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Later on, after Rose's friends had gone home, sworn to secrecy about the days events, and the TARDIS crew had returned to their ship, Rose and the Doctor were once again in bed, joined temporarily by Captain Jack, who was perched on the end of the bed. All three were ready for bed and Rose was trying to stop staring at Jack's exposed abs. He caught her eye, winked and then laughed as she blushed.

"Oi, stop flirting with my girl!" the Doctor joked, pulling Rose onto his lap. She stretched out her legs and settled between his, linked her fingers with his which were resting on her stomach and leant back against his firm chest.

"Are you two going to stay here for a while now?" she asked,

"Definitely," replied the Doctor, "We'll stay here until the end of January at least, I promise,"

"Good," said Rose, happily, "These past few weeks have been really tough but I think I can cope if…_when_ you go again."

The Doctor kissed the top of her head. "You're an amazing person, Rose Tyler,"

"Amen to that," Jack replied, standing up and stretching, "Right, I'm off to bed. G'night guys,"

"Night Jack," the Doctor and Rose said, as they friend left the room.

Rose pulled up the duvet and then rolled off the Doctor, snuggling down. The Doctor immediately pulled her closer to him and she lay with her ear pressed against his chest, listening to his dual heart beat. He was back.

"Night Rose,"

"Night Doctor."

Rose sighed contentedly and shut her eyes.

Life was good.

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_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	12. Part twelve

**A-Levels and Aliens**

**_Oh, I have _so_ had enough of my impossible law homework so I thought I'd write this up instead. As always, thanks for the reviews and hope you enjoy. Rating for the first paragraph but it isn't very much._**

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

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The Doctor woke up the next morning to discover Rose planting kisses all over his face, neck and bare chest.

"Are you _trying _to make me loose control?" he asked, huskily,

"No," Rose replied, her eyes dancing, "Why? Is it working?"

The Doctor's answer was to roll on top of her and start making out with her furiously. Rose kissed back with as much passion, her hands making their way up and down his bare back. The Doctor shifted slightly and his hands were just beginning to wander under Rose's pyjama top when she shook her head, regretfully.

"We can't," she said, "I've got to go to college soon."

The Doctor sighed but nodded. "Sorry, got a bit carried away,"

"Me too, I just want you so bad. Why is it every time we get in the mood, something always stops us?"

The Doctor shook his head. "We'll get there one day and it'll be worth the wait." He bent his head down to her neck and began to kiss and suck at it. "Are you gonna be alright at college today?" he asked, in between nibbles,

"Yeah," Rose gasped, "I bet she won't be there but if she is, I'll stay far, far away. Wouldn't go near her with a bargepole now!"

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Rose made her way to her usual meeting point at lunchtime, later on that day. To her relief, only Matt, Kirsty and Lauren were sitting there. Zoë was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey Rose," her friends greeted, as she collapsed onto the bench,

"Hi," she replied, "No sign of Zoë then?"

"Nope. My Maths teacher says she's quit college," Kirsty answered, "Apparently found the work too difficult or something,"

"Yeah right," Matt snorted,

"I'm kinda relieved actually," Rose commented, "I think life might have been a bit awkward at college if she'd stayed,"

"Yeah," said Lauren, "Bet she hasn't left London though,"

"Nah. I got to be careful and keep an eye out. The Doctor says they'll do anything pretty much to get me,"

"So why doesn't he or someone higher up stop them?" asked Kirsty, in exasperation, "And how does he know so much about them anyway?"

"He's an alien expert," Rose said, hastily, "And there's nothing he can do,"

"They _kidnapped _you! Can't they be locked up for that?"

"They're _aliens_, Kirsty, so no," Rose said, quietly,

"Why do they want _you_ so badly anyway?" Lauren asked.

Matt looked up at this. Not even he knew the answer to that.

"I don't know," Rose lied, shaking her head violently to emphasise her point.

Her friend's mouths dropped open.

"I see you and the Doctor had a nice reunion last night," Kirsty said.

Rose clapped a hand over the large hickey on her neck, courtesy of the Doctor, and blushed crimson. "We were happy to see each other again," she muttered,

"_Really_ happy," Matt smirked, "I thought he was a doctor, not a vampire."

Rose glowed like a red traffic light as her friends laughed.

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The following days and weeks passed quickly. That evening, after apologising with a giant grin about her hickey, the Doctor went over Rose's history coursework with her and by the time he'd finished telling his tales, many of which Rose and Jack could hardly believe, she knew a great deal about the period and managed to surprise her History teacher by handing in an excellent essay a full three days before the deadline.

They entered December a few days after the Doctor's return and a week after that, the Doctor, Rose and Jack spent a fun filled day decorating both Jackie's flat and the interior of the TARDIS- something that had never happened before. Unsurprisingly, Jack put mistletoe up all over the place and carried a piece around with him, surprising and delighting many girls and on one memorable occasion, Matt. The Doctor and Rose didn't mind the mistletoe and happily kissed under every piece they could find and even in some places where there wasn't any.

The trio went travelling again for a week between Rose's college finishing and Christmas Eve. They visited Christmassy places including Lapland and a German Christmas market, where they got very merry on mulled wine and gingerbread.

On Christmas Day itself, they spent the morning in Jackie's flat opening their presents. Rose gave the Doctor a collection of punk CD's, which she was certain that she'd live to regret, and the Doctor laughingly gave her some concealer and the promise that he'd give her something to use it over- the original one having faded away. Then he turned serious and handed over a necklace which Rose gasped at. The Doctor explained that the charm had a tracking device installed in it, which meant that if something ever happened to her, he'd immediately be able to find her again. He helped her put it on, making her promise to never take it off, and she gave him a hug and a loving kiss.

As soon as the festive jovialities were over, Rose put her head down and began to revise for her upcoming January exams. She had at least one in every subject and really wanted to do well. The Doctor did his best to help whether it was testing her on facts, dragging her away from her studies to have some fun when he felt she had done enough revision or giving her cuddles when she got too stressed and before each exam. Finally, they were over and overall, Rose felt pleased and optimistic about her results. She and her friends went out to celebrate at the local pub, escorted by the Doctor and Captain Jack. It was a double celebration as Lauren had just had her eighteenth birthday and proudly bought her first alcoholic drink legally.

A few days later, at the end of January, Rose was visiting her mother in her flat when suddenly the programme that they had been watching was interrupted by some breaking news. They watched in confusion and a little anxiety as the breathless news reporter announced that there had been a serious train crash on the Scottish border.

"…We are hearing that the driver of one of the train's involved in today's crash appears to have fallen asleep and consequently not seen a red stop signal and as a result ploughed headfirst into the Virgin train from Edinburgh to London…"

"Oh my!" Jackie gasped, her hand over her mouth, "Hope nobody was too seriously hurt,"

"…There have been many casualties and so far about fifteen people have been declared dead, including both drivers," continued the news reporter, "It's not clear just how serious this incident is but Scotland Yard have told us that they are almost certain that this is not a terrorist attack,"

"Well, that's something at least," Jackie said,

"Yeah," Rose nodded, "I'm gonna go see if the Doctor knows."

Jackie nodded and Rose jogged down the steps and across the forecourt into the TARDIS.

"Hey Rose," Jack greeted, "You're back early!"

"Yeah, look there's been some breaking news," said Rose, fiddling with the control panel until the screen began to emit News24. She stood there and watched it, feeling the two men stand behind her, the Doctor circling his arms around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulder. They watched it in silence for a few minutes until Rose felt they'd gotten the gist.

"It's not aliens, is it?" she asked, turning her head to look at the Doctor,

"Nah, just an accident," he replied, looking at her with a gentle smile before turning back to the screen, "Nothing suspicious about it at all."

Rose nodded and took his hand from where it was resting on her hip. "C'mon, Mum wanted to know if you wanted to come 'round for tea."

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The next day, Rose was in her bedroom, doing a small piece of homework having just gotten back from college, when she heard Jack calling her name.

"Rose! Your Mom's here!"

"Coming," she called back, putting down her pen and skipping to the control room, "Hey Mum, are you alright?"

She looked at Jackie, who was very pale and looked on the verge of tears. "I…I've just been on the 'phone to your Aunty Gillian," she began, shakily, "An' she's got some bad news. Your Uncle Jim was on that train that was hit yesterday in the crash,"

"Is he alright?" Rose asked, quietly, unconsciously holding her breath,

"No, he's… he's dead!"

Rose's knees buckled and the Doctor darted forward to help her stay upright. He could feel her shaking uncontrollably.

"Your Uncle Tony and Aunty Josie are coming 'round in fifteen minutes and we're driving up to Edinburgh to help Gillian and the kids. Do you wanna come?" Jackie asked, with a sob.

Rose shook her head. "I… I'd rather stay here," she muttered, feeling grateful for the Doctor's strong supportive arms holding her tight, "Give them my love and keep me updated, yeah?"

"Alright," Jackie said, tears cascading down her cheeks from grief,

"Jack, will you go and help Jackie?" the Doctor asked, quietly, knowing that Rose needed only him right now, no matter how much she loved Jack.

Jack nodded and gently put an arm around Jackie's shoulder before leading her away.

"You alright?" the Doctor asked Rose,

"No," Rose whispered, turning to bury her face in his chest, "Uncle Jim, he was my favourite uncle. He's Mum's younger brother and when I was little, he was like a father to me. But then, when I was thirteen, he and his wife Aunty Gillian and their kids, Jane and Harvey, they all moved up to Edinburgh and we kind of lost touch as we couldn't afford to go visit them and we didn't have their telephone number for a while,"

"I'm really sorry," the Doctor said, kissing her head lightly, "I know how hard it is to loose a loved one,"

"Yeah," Rose nodded, bunching her hands in his shirt and remembering how he'd lost all of his family and his planet. She raised her head suddenly, a thought occurring to her. "Doctor?" she asked, wild hope in her eyes, "Can we go back in time and warn him not to get on the train or something so he won't die? Please?"

The Doctor's face fell. "We can't, Rose," he said, sadly,

"Please Doctor," Rose begged, "I know we can't stop the crash but _please_ can't we just warn my uncle? It's gonna tear my family apart,"

"It's not possible," the Doctor replied, hating himself after seeing the grief and desperation in her eyes, "We're part of events now, I've explained this to you before. I'm sorry,"

"We _can_!" Rose cried, wiping her eyes furiously, "Come on, _please_ Doctor? For me?"

"No Rose," the Doctor said, firmly, hating that she'd used that card, "I'm not going to risk the Reapers coming, just for you. You know what happened when we went back to see your Dad and I don't want it to happen again and it _will_ if we try it,"

"I can't believe you're denying me this one thing," Rose shrieked, her body heaving from her sobs, "I thought you loved me!"

"Rose, stop this!" the Doctor said, taking a shaky breath, "I know you're upset and you're saying things that you don't mean! You know _exactly_ why we can't do this and I'm really sorry. You know I'd do it if I could but I _can't_. Don't you think I'd have gone and saved my people if this sort of thing was possible?"

Rose took a step backwards and searched his face, only seeing a firm no etched into his features, firm resolve in his eyes. "I'm sorry," he repeated, "We can't,"

"I hate you," Rose hissed, not hearing a word of his explanations, only the words 'we can't', "I HATE YOU!" she screamed, before pulling herself out of his arms and fleeing the room.

The Doctor watched her go, feeling his hearts break.

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_**And please welcome back the angst after a noticeable lack of it last chapter! Anyone got any opinion of how the Doctor's gonna respond to Rose when they see each other again? And Rose? I'd like to thank my good friend Nicole, who I went on holiday with and she dutifully read all the chapters (except this one funnily enough) for coming up with the names of Rose's family (except for Jim- that's mine!) and helping me with the plot. I think I kind of scared the people in front of us when I started talking loudly about this train crash that I was gonna have happen and a person I was going to kill… Anyway, hope you enjoyed.**_

_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	13. Part thirteen

**A-Levels and Aliens**

**_I apologise in advance for the angst in this chapter; it's not all bad, though! Hope you enjoy and thanks for the reviews._**

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

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Rose didn't come out of her bedroom all evening, refusing even to come out for tea. Jack offered to take it to her and quickly made his way down the maze of corridors to her room.

"Got your dinner, honey," he said, placing the tray on her desk and then turning to her,

"Thanks," she said, quietly, her face tearstained,

"I'm sorry to hear about your uncle."

Rose nodded, two tears making fresh tracks down her cheeks. Jack immediately went and sat down next to her on the bed and gave her a hug.

"Is he really angry with me, Jack?" she asked, into his chest,

"No, more hurt really."

Rose hiccupped suddenly.

"You know he can't do those things you asked him too. He's explained the whole concept to you before, hasn't he?"

She nodded.

"I know you're hurting 'cause of your uncle and we understand that but… well, you know what I'm trying to say here."

Rose nodded again.

"Just think about it, alright honey?"

And with that, Jack gave her a brief kiss on the forehead and left her to it.

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Much later, Rose opened her door quietly and stepped out in search of the Doctor. He wasn't in his bedroom- not that he'd slept in there for months- nor in the kitchen. She stood in the deserted control room, wondering where he could be and if she should find and ask Jack, when she noticed the TARDIS door was slightly open. She slipped though it and discovered the Doctor standing outside, staring up at the stars in the clear night sky, hands deep in his trouser pockets.

"Are you going to be leaving again soon?" she asked, softly,

"Yeah, probably just after your half term," he answered, not averting his gaze, "Starting to feel restless again,"

"Oh OK," Rose said, moving to stand next to him. They stood in silence for a few moments, each gazing upwards, each lost in their own thoughts.

"I'm sorry," Rose said, suddenly, "I didn't mean it. I don't hate you,"

"I know," replied the Doctor, "It's OK. It was your grief talking, not you. I understand,"

"I'm so sorry," Rose said, a lump in her throat and tears in her eyes, "I can't believe I said those things to you especially when I _know_ you can't do it and you're always so loving and kind to me and then I go and treat you like trash. You're never gonna forgive me,"

"Rose," the Doctor whispered, wrapping one arm around her back to pull her closer to him and cupping her cheek with his other hand, "It's alright, no need to apologise. I've already forgiven you, not that there was anything to forgive. Like I said, it was your grief talking. I did it too, after the Time War and the poor TARDIS took a right battering."

Brown eyes stared at brown eyes until Rose exhaled heavily and leant her forehead against the Doctor's chest. "I just feel so guilty," she confessed, "Like I deserve to be punished or something."

"What, you want me to make you paint yourself blue and stand in the corner with a Dunce's hat on?"

"If it would make me feel better,"

"Well tough. It wouldn't make _me_ feel better. But I know something that would,"

"What?" asked Rose, lifting her head,

"This," the Doctor descended down on her mouth, kissing her lovingly, "I love you, Rose,"

"Love you too," Rose sighed, a warm bubble erupting in her chest, "What did I do to deserve you?"

"That's a question I ask myself everyday," the Doctor replied, seriously before holding her tightly as he felt her shiver from the cold night air, "Are you OK now?"

"I think so," Rose said, before gasping as waves of images of her Uncle Jim swam through her mind. Her legs gave out beneath her and she collapsed to the ground; the Doctor instantly kneeling down beside her, "He's dead. I'm never gonna see him again, never gonna talk to him again, never gonna get a funny birthday card from him every year, oh _God_!" She gasped for breath as sobs erupted from her mouth as her Uncle's death suddenly hit her.

The Doctor picked her up easily in his strong arms and carried her into the TARDIS, his body pressed comfortingly against her trembling one. He gently set her down on the captain's chair and took a seat next to her. She immediately reached out for him, winding her arms around his waist and burying her wet face in his chest.

"Let it out," he said, softly, stroking her back and hair, "Come on, Rose. It's OK to cry."

Rose clung tightly to one of his hands as tears poured down her cheeks and sobs wracked her whole body. She felt grateful to the Doctor for just being there and holding her, soothing her as she grieved, even crying as she did and being her hand to hold especially after the hurtful things she said to him earlier.

Finally, her tears ran out and she was left to just sniffing sadly. She raised her head and smiled wobbly at the Doctor. "Thanks," she whispered,

"Anytime," he whispered back, handing her a tissue which she took gratefully, "I'm always here for you, my angel."

Rose nodded, almost drowning in the love she saw in his eyes and felt for him. "Sorry I got your shirt all wet," she muttered, feeling the damp fabric against her cheek,

"Don't worry, it'll dry," soothed the Doctor, "Do you want anything?" he asked, meaning a drink or something,

"Not really," Rose said, wiping her eyes, "Can… Can we talk about him? I'd like to tell you about Uncle Jim,"

"Course."

Rose shifted herself, so her head was lying on his warm lap, face angled to look at him before beginning. She held his left hand whilst his right stroked her hair and traced her facial features comfortingly. They sat in that position for the rest of the night, falling asleep together just before dawn to be discovered by Jack. He smiled as he saw them before creeping quietly off, leaving them in peace.

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The Doctor refused to let Rose go to college that day so instead she stayed at home with him and Jack, who both did their best to keep her cheerful. She understandably had anxious calls and texts from her friends, asking her where she was and if she was OK. She was touched at their concern and promised them she'd be in the next day after telling them what had happened. They were most sympathetic and promised to do everything they could to help her, such as picking up any work from college. Rose was glad that she had such amazing friends.

Just over a week later, Rose's college finished for half term. She was slightly scared at just how fast time had passed, meaning that her exams were looming. The TARDIS trio went travelling again for that week and had an amazing time at a ski resort, where all three of them learnt and improved their skiing skills. They had a race on their final day, which Rose just won, beating Jack by a nanosecond. They had left the Doctor halfway up the slope, where he had fallen over. Jack and Rose struggled back up the hill and tried to help him upright, made slightly more difficult by the fact that they were in hysterics at the same time. On the Wednesday, they made a scheduled stop in Edinburgh for Rose's uncle's funeral. The Doctor came into the crematorium with her and silently sat by her, holding her hand all the way through the service as she sat pale faced. Jack joined them afterwards for the wake back at Uncle Jim's house, where Rose introduced them both to her relatives. The Doctor blushed at several comments made by her elder relatives and was thoroughly glad to leave the house after they'd stayed a respectable amount of time. Jackie promised to come back home at the weekend so Rose could stay with her. The trio spent the rest of the week exploring Italy and reluctantly left the partial warmth for the freezing February temperatures back in London on the Sunday night.

The Doctor and Jack said a sad goodbye to Rose the following morning. It wasn't as bad as the previous time as they now knew what to expect.

"So do you think it'll be three weeks again?" Rose asked, just before their departure,

"I don't know," the Doctor replied, holding her tightly, "It might be less time, it might be more but I'll keep you updated." He hesitated. "Are you _sure_ you don't want me to stay with you instead? It's only been a few weeks and…"

"I'll be fine, Doctor. You need to go travelling again, don't worry about me," Rose said, smiling and pressing her hand against his cheek.

He turned his face and kissed her palm gently. "Alright but call me if you want to talk or need anything… _anything_ at all and I'll be right with you. Doesn't matter what time, you're more important to me than anything else."

"Thanks," Rose said, "Missing you already,"

"Same. Love you loads."

The Doctor kissed her and darted into the TARDIS, smiling at her as he went. The door shut and the engines began to whirr before the great machine disappeared.

Rose sighed before hoisting her bag onto her back and walking away. He'd be back before she knew it.

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Rose's first week without the Doctor passed quickly enough. She kept herself occupied with work and friends and spoke to the Doctor and Jack regularly. She spent time with Jackie, having girly nights in or chatting about things. The death of her little brother had made Jackie more aware and she tried to stay in contact with her remaining family more, knowing that they could be ripped away at any moment. She knew that as soon as Rose completed her A-Levels, it was extremely likely that she'd disappear off the face of the planet once again and there'd be months long gaps between her visits. She didn't want her daughter to become a stranger.

On the second Tuesday back, Rose had just sat down and taken out a sandwich when Kirsty bounded up, looking over the moon about something.

"What's happened?" Rose grinned, her friend's enthusiasm contagious,

"My Mum's just 'phoned me. I got some post from Liverpool uni!"

"And?" Rose asked, holding her breath,

"They've accepted me!" Kirsty squealed, "If I get the grades, I'm going to Liverpool!"

"Well done!" Rose shrieked, leaping up and hugging her friend, "I'm so happy for you!"

"Thanks," Kirsty said, a grin stretching from ear to ear, "God, I'm so happy. It's my dream come true!"

"Yeah," Rose said, wishing _her_ dream would come true and the Doctor would arrive back in London right _now_,

"You're not going to uni, are you?" Kirsty said,

"Nope. Me and the Doctor, and Jack of course, are going travelling again and we'll probably never stop,"

"Won't you run out of places to visit?"

"Nah, never happen," Rose declared, "Far too much to see,"

"Well, don't forget to send me a postcard occasionally," Kirsty joked, "Think of me slaving away at my literature course whilst you're seeing the Seven Wonders of the World!"

"With the eighth," Rose grinned before thinking that she really would miss her new friends- especially Kirsty, Lauren and Matt- once this chapter of her life was over. They'd made more of an impact on her life than Shareen or Keisha ever had. She'd be sad to say goodbye but at least se still had a few months left with them. And then, she had the rest of her life with the Doctor and Jack to look forward to.

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"_Hi Rose," said a voice._

_She opened her eyes from where she'd been lying on her bed in the TARDIS and smiled._

"_Hey Jack," she greeted, "You alright?"_

"_Yeah," he said, coming in and sitting next to her, "I'm on top of the world!"_

"_How come?"_

"_I'm in love! I've come to say goodbye,"_

"_What for?" Rose asked, startled,_

"_Me and Jessa, we've finally admitted our feelings and we're eloping!" Jack cried, ecstatically, "Oh Rose, I've never felt this way about anyone before!"_

"_But…but you don't _like_ Jessa that much!" Rose said, confused, "You told me yourself!"_

"_I had the wool pulled over my eyes," Jack yelled, happily, "I was blind. But now I must go, have a great life, Rose. I sure will!"_

_He hugged her and bounded out of the room, briefly bumping into the Doctor and saying "See ya, Doc!" before disappearing._

"_He can't do that!" Rose cried, "Aren't you gonna stop him?"_

"_Nah," replied the Doctor, "Rose, I need to talk to you,"_

"_OK," she replied, crossing her legs and reaching out for his hand._

_He quickly moved it and looked at her. Rose frowned. There was something missing…_

"_Rose, I don't love you anymore," the Doctor said, bluntly._

_Rose gasped. "What? _Why_?"_

"_I don't do domestics, I've told you before," said the Doctor, "And what we've had, it's all very domestic. Plus, there's the enormous age gap and quite frankly, I've grown bored of you,"_

"_But you said none of that mattered!" Rose said, refusing to cry, "You swore that you didn't care about that as you loved me!"_

"_I was a fool," the Doctor said, shortly, "Now, pack your bags. I'm dropping you off home in ten minutes." He stood up and marched out of the room while Rose stared after him, struggling to understand what had just happened._

_With a sob, she fell back down against the pillows and let the tears come. The Doctor didn't love her anymore…_

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"Doctor, no! Please!" Rose mumbled, before shooting up with a gasp, breathing heavily; sweat and tears mingling on her face. "It was just a dream," she told herself, switching on her bedside lamp with trembling fingers, "He does love me, he does!"

But why did an awful lot of things make sense in that dream..?

Quickly, she snatched up her mobile phone and dialled the TARDIS' number.

"Hello!" came a cheery voice, from the other end,

"Doctor, do… do you still love me?" Rose asked, haltingly,

"Of course I do! What's bought this on, Rose?"

Rose breathed a sigh of relief and gave a small sob. "I had a bad dream,"

"Oh Rose," the Doctor sighed, "I'm sorry. Do you want to talk about it?"

"Yeah, you and Jack were both gonna leave me," Rose explained, with tears in her voice, "Jack, 'cause he was gonna elope with Jessa and you 'cause…'cause…'cause you didn't love me anymore,"

"I'll always love you, Rose," reassured the Doctor, "And I promise that I'll never leave you, OK?"

"Yeah," Rose whispered,

"And I'm pretty certain that Jack won't leave us to elope with Jessa…"

Rose heard a loud "_what_!" in the background and then a swishing sound as Jack grabbed the 'phone off the Doctor.

"Rose, honey? What's this all about?"

She explained as best as she could, her sobs being replaced by small chuckles as she pictured the ex-Time Agent's face.

"That will _never _happen," he assured her when she'd finished, "I like Jessa well enough but I'd _never_ choose her over you and the Doctor and our travels. Never,"

"OK, Jack," Rose said, feeling relieved and oddly touched,

"Here's the Doctor again," said Jack, "Love ya lots, babe,"

"Are you feeling better now, my angel?" the Doctor asked, a few seconds later,

"Yeah…I'm sorry," Rose replied, "It's just some of the stuff that you- the you in my dream- said made sense. Like you don't do domestics,"

"I didn't last body," the Doctor mused, "But I do now. I do them for you. I can cope with them for you and only you."

Rose smiled; her heart swelling with emotion. "Doctor?"

"Yes, Rose?"

"I love you."

The Doctor grinned, his mended heart glowing.

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_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	14. Part fourteen

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**Warning: the rating has increased to M due to content in this and future chapters. Other than that, hope you enjoy and thanks for the reviews!**_

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

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The following Saturday, Matt and Rose met up and decided to go for a walk. They strolled along happily in the early March sunshine before deciding to take a rest in the nearby playground. Upon sitting down, Rose realised that it was the same playground where she'd finally realised about Bad Wolf. The enormous letters on the tarmac had long since disappeared but the graffiti on the walls remained. Just looking at it gave her the shivers. That had been when she'd thought she'd lost her Doctor for good and she kind of had. She did miss the 'old' Doctor but the 'new' one more than made up for it. Seeming to pick up on her thoughts, Matt screwed up his chips wrapper and asked, "When's the Doctor coming back, then?"

"I don't know," Rose replied, "I spoke to him last night and he's not sure. He got sidetracked as he had to deal with some nasty aliens who were hell bent on stealing some priceless artefact from somewhere."

Matt chuckled and she turned her head enquiringly. "It's scary just how normal that sounds coming from you," he explained.

Rose laughed. "It's my life, it _is_ normal for me!" She sighed. "God I miss it. Don't get me wrong, I love college but travelling, it's like it's in my blood or something,"

"You gonna travel with the Doctor forever then?"

"I hope so. For the rest of my life at least,"

"What about his? Isn't he older than you?" asked Matt,

"He's a Time Lord. He lives for ages,"

"So how old_ is_ he then?"

"Just over nine hundred." Rose giggled at his face,

"Jesus! But won't that mean he'll live for a long time after you've died?" Matt said, quietly,

"It's the Curse of the Time Lords." Rose replied, sadly, "And that's partly why I love him so much. He knows that he's gonna have to watch me die and then live on but he still stays with me and loves me."

Matt sighed. "Seriously, if I ever have anything half as much as you two do, then I'll be very lucky,"

"You'll find someone, Matt," Rose said, with a gentle smile, "At uni or something."

Matt nodded and the pair sat in silence for a while, just thinking.

"Matt?" Rose asked, eventually, nibbling on the end of her scarf, "Do you think Kirsty and Lauren suspect something?"

Her friend scratched his head. "They might do, yeah," he answered, "I think they know something isn't quite right with the Doctor, especially after that incident last November, but they're too scared to ask,"

"Yeah," Rose agreed, "I hate lying to them." She sighed. "We'll just have to see what happens."

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The following Thursday, it was January exams results day and the entirety of Rose's college went to collect their brown envelopes with butterflies swarming in their stomachs.

Rose took a deep breath and tore open the envelope before unfolding the white piece of paper. She stared at the paper before looking up.

"Any good?" asked Kirsty,

"Yeah, got A's and B's in most things except in History. I got a D,"

"That's not _too_ bad," her friend replied,

"Nah," Rose smiled, "I can always retake the exam. How'd you do?"

"Great! I'm on track for Liverpool!" Kirsty said, in excitement,

"That's cool. C'mon, let's go find the others and see how they've done!"

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Matt stepped out of the dim college building into the bright spring sunshine, later that same day. He was momentarily blinded and moved his hand up to shade his eyes from the glare. As soon as his eyes had adjusted, he glanced around and the first thing he saw made him grin.

"She'll be out in a moment," he said, "She's just talking to our History teacher. Tell her I said bye."

The figure nodded their thanks and leant back against the college wall, watching as Matt walked off and waited for his angel.

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Rose hurried down the stairs. Her chat with her teacher had overrun slightly and now she was late to meet her friends. She burst through the door and stopped dead, her eyes only focusing on one person. The Doctor. He was back.

With a cry of delight, she tore across the courtyard and launched herself into his waiting arms. Her feet left the floor as he swung her around, his hands planted firmly on her waist, her arms looped around his neck.

"You're back!" she said, happily, gazing at his face,

"Yup. Arrived about half an hour ago and came straight here," the Doctor replied, putting her down but not removing his arms, "You alright?"

"I am now!" Rose grinned, "You said on the 'phone you wouldn't be back until next week!"

"I wanted to surprise you," said the Doctor,

"Well, it worked!" Rose closed the distance between them and gently kissed him, opening her mouth after a few seconds and probing with her tongue, asking for permission which the Doctor instantly granted.

It would have been likely that the two would have stayed there; kissing all evening if it hadn't been for the slight cough that interrupted them. They broke apart reluctantly and looked around.

"Oh my God!" Rose said, mortified to see that it was her history teacher, a knowing grin on her face, "Sorry!"

"It's quite alright. This the famous boyfriend then?"

Overcome with embarrassment, all Rose could do was nod dumbly.

"I'm the Doctor," the Doctor said, taking pity on her and shaking Rose's teacher's hand,

"Pleased to meet you," she replied, "I've heard a lot about you from Rose in class."

The Doctor shot Rose an amused glance. "It's all true," he said, immediately,

"I'll bet. Anyway, I must be off. See you tomorrow, Rose,"

"Bye," Rose whispered, still blushing as her teacher walked away. As soon as she was out of ear shot, she groaned and hid her face in her hands. "I'm never gonna be able to look her in the eye again!"

The Doctor laughed. "Never mind," he soothed, giving her a comforting hug, "C'mon, let's go home." He took her hand and interlinked their fingers before they walked back to the TARDIS together.

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Jack was overjoyed to see Rose again. The trio invited Jackie down to the TARDIS for a rowdy evening, where the Doctor and Jack entertained the girls over dinner with tales of their adventures of the past few weeks. They also celebrated Rose's exam results, during which they all come to the conclusion that it would be best if she retook her History exam. Her history teacher had made the same judgement when Rose had spoken to her earlier that day.

Finally, at just past eleven o'clock, Jackie left for her flat and the Doctor and Rose retired to their bedroom.

"You're all knotted up," the Doctor murmured, feeling her shoulders, "Stress?"

"Probably, especially these past few months,"

"Well, I think you've coped brilliantly," the Doctor said, nuzzling her neck, "D'ya want a massage?"

"Please," Rose nodded, rolling her shoulders,

"C'mon then."

They moved into position with Rose crawling to sit between the Doctor's legs on the bed while he leant against the headboard. Rose stripped off her pyjama top and suddenly giggled.

"I really hope Jack doesn't come in!" If he did, he would have a spectacular view of Rose's front as she was sitting directly opposite the doorway.

"I'll ask the old girl to lock the door," said the Doctor, closing his eyes briefly as he connected with his magnificent ship, before beginning to gently rub Rose's shoulders, easing away the tension. Rose hummed in appreciation and leant back against his hands.

"So," the Doctor said, after a period of comfortable silence, "You tell your History class all about me?"

"Mmm, yeah" replied Rose, "It was originally just me and Matt discussing you but then some of my friends who sit close by cottoned on and before long, the whole class would talk about you. We use it as a kind of distraction technique when we've had enough of History."

The Doctor chuckled. "What exactly do you talk about?" he asked, lowly,

"Most things, really," murmured Rose, closing her eyes,

"Have you told them about our cuddles?" he whispered, abandoning the massage and snaking his arms tightly around her waist, "Or our kisses?" He leant forward and kissed her lips, sideways from his angle. "Or other things we get up to?" He moved his mouth down to her neck and started peppering her with kisses, sucking and biting at her skin.

"Not…not in great detail," Rose gasped, as shivers swept up and down her spine. Suddenly, she felt something nudge her lower back, something that _definitely _hadn't been there before. She turned to look at the Doctor, amusement and lust overriding shock. "This is _really_ turning you on, isn't it?"

"Little bit, yeah. You?" said the Doctor, his voice husky,

"Little bit, yeah,"

"Wanna do something about it?"

Rose looked at her Doctor, staring into his eyes that were smoky with desire and want. She breathed out gently, aware that her eyes mirrored his.

"Yeah," she said, before succumbing to the passion.

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_Oh my God, we finally did it!_

Rose had woken up the next morning to find herself tangled up in a mess of arms and legs with a very naked Time Lord. She smiled happily and carefully extracted her arm before cupping the Doctor's cheek, staring at his peaceful features.

_He's mine. All mine._

"Morning," the Doctor said, sleepily, snapping his eyes open suddenly, "How are you today?"

"Amazing," Rose breathed, "You know when you said ages ago that when we finally did it, it would be worth the wait?"

"Yep?"

"Well, you were right,"

"Have to agree with you there, beautiful."

Rose smiled and laid her head on his chest, listening to his hearts beat. He softly stroked her bare arm, his fingers making patterns on her skin.

"I haven't told you this yet today but I love you," he said, with a sweet smile.

Rose laughed. "I love _you_. Always have, always will,"

"Always have?"

"Near enough, yeah," Rose yawned, a hand creeping up to trace his lips, "I knew I liked you when you caught me after we defeated the Nestene Consciousness on our first adventure. Do you remember? We had a little moment where we were both holding onto one another and staring at each other just before we had to run for our lives before the building exploded,"

"Yeah, I remember," the Doctor grinned, "I was so gutted when you decided not to come with me,"

"I am _so_ glad you came back and gave me a second chance!" Rose said, passionately,

"Me too! So, when _did_ you fall in love with me?"

"I think I loved you when you bought me back to modern day London after we saw the end of the world and you told me about Gallifrey. I could see it hurt you to talk about it but there you were telling me, a girl who you'd only just met! And then I think I fell slap-bang in love with you in Cardiff, just before we thought we were gonna die and we were locked in that dungeon and we held hands and… well, I just suddenly knew."

The Doctor smiled. "It was the same for me. Do you remember that dress you wore? You looked so beautiful,"

"For an ape?"

"No, you were possibly the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen and you still are."

Rose couldn't help it. She reached up and captured his lips in a searing kiss. They loved each other and that was all that mattered.

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The following day, it was a Saturday and having nothing ultra important to do (for a change), Rose begged Jack and the Doctor to come out with her for a day trip in London.

"Come with me to the Camden Markets!" she pleaded, "It's great there and I haven't been in ages!"

"Sounds good to me!" Jack said, grasping her hand and then turning to the other present male, "Doctor?"

"I can't," he said, sorrowfully, "I need to fix the TARDIS." He looked at Rose. "We had a bit of a problem while we were away and something's wrong. I need to see what it is and it might take a while."

Rose nodded. "OK. Good luck with it." She dropped Jack's hand momentarily to embrace her lover. "See you later, yeah? Probably late this afternoon. We'll bring chips back for tea,"

"Great!" said the Doctor, kissing her briefly, "See you tonight."

Rose smiled before retaking Jack's hand and leaving the TARDIS, making for the nearest Tube station. She was determined to have a fun day.

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A couple of hours later, Jack and Rose were lost in the maze that was the Camden Markets. They were enjoying themselves thoroughly and were having a good chat, it being just the two of them for a change.

"Oooh, look at these!" Rose gasped, staring at some brightly coloured scarves on a nearby stall, "Aren't they gorgeous?"

"Yeah," Jack agreed, eyeing up the cute young man manning the stall, "Hey,"

"Hi," he replied, with a smile,

"I'm Jack," the Captain said, extending his hand.

Rose rolled her eyes. He was off again. "I'm gonna look at the next couple of stalls,"

"OK, honey," Jack replied, distractedly.

Five minutes later, feeling rather smug with the guy's 'phone number safely in his pocket- just in case-, Jack turned away and began to look for his best friend.

"Rose?" he called, scanning the crowds and not seeing her. "ROSE?" He pushed his way through the throngs of people, desperately looking but never seeing. He pulled out his cell phone and quickly called her mobile number.

"Yeah?"

"Rose?"

"No, it's the Doctor. What's up, Jack?"

"Is Rose with you? Why do you have her cell?"

"She must have forgotten it. It was lying on the Captain's Chair…" The Doctor paused for a moment. "Jack, I thought Rose was with you…"

Jack fought the rising panic in his chest. "She's not, Doctor," he said, worry appearing in his tone, "Doctor, Rose has disappeared."

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_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	15. Part fifteen

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**Thanks for the reviews and I hope you enjoy this chapter. Warning: strong language and violence in this chapter.**_

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

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Rose came to with a groan and opened her eyes slowly. Immediately, she scrambled up, leaning against the wallpapered wall and staring around, trying desperately to remember what had happened and how she'd got here…wherever 'here' was. The room she was in was small, light and bare with no furniture at all and nothing on the walls except a horrible yellow flowery wallpaper that was slowly peeling away. The carpet was threadbare and colourless with dubious looking stains on.

Rose glanced around, taking in the door and window. She darted to the ordinary looking door and tugged at the metal handle, wishing for it to open but it didn't. There was no obvious way of keeping it locked on her side of the door so there must be a bolt or some kind of contraption on the other side. Next she tried the window that was in good need of a clean, both inside and out. It looked to be a push up window but when she tried, it didn't work. She obviously needed a key to release the latch.

Realising that she had run out of escape options, Rose looked outside, hoping that it would help her work out where she was. The first thing she noticed was that the ground was a long way away- she must be on the second floor at least. There was an un-kept garden below her and then an empty road. She assumed that she was still in London as she could see lots of high-rise buildings beyond the neighbouring houses and could hear traffic through the single glazing windows.

Rubbing her left arm unconsciously as she thought about what to do now, Rose became aware of a patch on her arm that hurt when she touched it. Pushing up her t-shirt sleeve and idly wondering where her jacket was, she noticed a tiny pinprick on her skin that hadn't been there before.

_What on earth had happened?_

Screwing up her face in concentration, Rose thought hard, struggling to remember…She had been in the Camden Markets with Jack… he had started flirting with that guy so she had moved on… she had taken off her jacket in order to try another on from a nearby clothes stall… and then she'd suddenly felt somebody grab her from behind and a sharp pain in her upper left arm and then… nothing. Rose rubbed the pinprick again. She must have been injected with a drug of some sort to make her fall unconscious or something.

Suddenly, she heard the door being unbolted and opened but she stayed staring out of the window, arms crossed. She was pretty certain that she knew who would be standing there.

"Hello Rose. Long time no see."

Rose sighed, her heart pumping furiously.

"Hi Zoë."

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_This can't be happening!_

The Doctor paced round and round the TARDIS console, his hand ruffling through his hair in agitation as he waited for Jack to return so they could find Rose.

_Why didn't I go with them? I could have stopped this from happening! Oh God, why didn't I go? No, no, I can't blame myself now. There'll be time enough for that later._

He collapsed onto the Captain's Chair, his face in his hands. He desperately hoped that Rose was alright. It _had_ to be the Ziola; no-one else had the motive to kidnap his angel. He knew that Rose had been kidnapped now. Jack was about to hang up earlier when he had suddenly spotted Rose's jacket on the floor next to a clothes stall. It was her favourite and she would never leave it behind. Jack had questioned the stall owner, who said that she had seen a young blonde woman at her stall about ten minutes previously and she had been about to try on a jacket when two other people came up behind her and she seemed to leave quite happily with them. That was the bit that worried the Doctor the most. Why would Rose walk away happily with the Ziola?

The sound of the TARDIS door bursting open interrupted the Doctor from his musing and he looked up.

"Jack!"

"Doctor!"

"It's gotta be the Ziola, Jack,"

"I think you're right," replied the pale ex- Time Agent, "D'ya think we should go and check out that house where they kept Rose before?"

"Good idea," said the Doctor, glad that Jack had thought up an idea. His brain was refusing to co-operate at the moment. "Let's go."

The two men ran the entire way to where they hoped Rose was. The house looked exactly the same as it did the previous November except there were less leaves littering the floor and more on the trees.

The Doctor pounded on the front door, ignoring the horrible feeling in his gut that told him the house was deserted. He pulled out the sonic screwdriver and unlocked the door before quickly searching every room in the dark and dusty building. Finally, he returned to the main hallway, breathing heavily as he realised his gut feeling had been right all along.

Rose wasn't here.

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"What do you want, Zoë?" Rose asked, still not bothering to turn around,

"The same as we did last time. Bad Wolf to resurrect our species," replied the alien,

"You still don't get it, do you?" Rose snapped, finally turning around. Zoë still looked the same as ever. "I don't _know_ how to do that. Just get it into your thick head!"

Zoë leapt forward and slapped Rose sharply across the face. "Don't _ever _call me thick again! I am a Ziola. We are more intelligent than the entirety of your miserable race put together!"

Rose smirked, ignoring her stinging cheek. "Then why don't you start showing it?"

Zoë growled, an ugly expression appearing on her face. "You just made a _big_ mistake, Rose Tyler," she said, softly. She hit out and her fist connected with Rose's face before starting to pummel her stomach. Rose twisted over, trying to protect herself from the blows. Zoë kicked out and Rose fell over with a thud, curling up into the foetal position while trying to hit back. It was near impossible, unfortunately, due to her position. Suddenly, she found herself winded as Zoë's foot crashed through her defences and impacted with her stomach, swiftly followed by another. She gasped for breath while staring up at Zoë through pain- induced teary eyes.

"Pathetic," Zoë snarled, "Where's your _precious_ Doctor now, Rose? Huh? Where is he?"

Rose struggled to take in a deep breath as Zoë slammed and bolted the door behind her. She reached up to fiddle with her necklace, hoping desperately that her saviour was on his way.

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"What the _hell_ do we do now?" Jack raged, striding around when they had returned to the TARDIS, "We've got no leads, nothing!"

The Doctor sat on the metal floor, the nervous energy in his body making him fiddle with his suit jacket buttons, while he listened to Jack rant.

"I mean, why the _hell_ do the Ziola keep picking on Rose anyway? What's she ever do to them?" Jack continued, furiously, "She's just a sweet, innocent young woman! Can't they just leave her alone?"

"They probably still want Bad Wolf," the Doctor sighed, "I just wish I knew where she was!" Suddenly, he had an idea. "What did Rose have on her?"

"Just her normal stuff," Jack said, "Why?"

"The TARDIS could track her if she has anything that has the TARDIS in," the Doctor explained, urgently,

"Like the Superphone!" Jack said in excitement, before his face dropped, "No, she left that here. Damn!"

"Erm… her TARDIS key!" the Doctor cried, standing up and racing to the control panel. He quickly keyed in some commands and then his face lit up. "She's locating it! Oh my _beautiful_ ship!"

The two men eagerly watched for a few moments before the screen displayed the key's location.

"_Yes_!" Jack cheered, before looking again, "Hang on, that's saying it's in here..!"

The Doctor felt both his hearts plummet. "Her jacket," he said, hoarsely, before striding over to where Jack had left it, hung over a railing on his return. He picked it up and felt in the pockets before swearing loudly and pulling out a small golden key. "C'mon, there's _got_ to be something else!"

"Her necklace!" Jack shouted, "The one you gave her for Christmas!"

"Of course!" the Doctor cried, "That was the whole point of giving it to her so I could find her if this sort of thing happened. Why on earth didn't I think of it before?"

"You've thought of it now, come on!" Jack urged.

The Doctor typed in new commands and breathlessly waited for the new location to appear.

"It's moving," Jack said, watching as the small gold dot shifted ever so slightly across the screen, "It's got to be her! Where is she?"

The Doctor scanned the screen intently. "North West London, street called Camden Lane. I'm locking the TARDIS onto it." He pulled a few levers and the familiar drone of the engines rose up. A few seconds later, they cut away. "We're near Rose. She'll be somewhere around but the TARDIS can't get any closer."

Jack nodded. "I guess we're near the markets." He sighed heavily. "I can't believe I let her be kidnapped right under my nose! If only I hadn't spent so long flirting with that guy! I should have stayed with her!"

"You did what?" the Doctor growled, "You mean to say that you were _flirting_ while Rose was being kidnapped? You complete and utter idiot! I trusted you to look after her, Jack! I can't believe you!"

"Look, I'm sorry, alright!" Jack exclaimed, "I really am but us standing here arguing isn't helping Rose!"

The Doctor glared at him. "You're right. So now I'm going to go out and find her _alone_…"

Jack winced but nodded, understanding.

"…And I hope for your sake that she's OK!"

And with that, the Doctor took one last glance at the TARDIS' screen before sweeping out of his ship, his long overcoat billowing out behind him.

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Rose bit her lip, trying desperately to not scream out loud as the ray swept up and down her body. She had been dragged roughly from her original room, down two flights of stairs and into another room, where the as-yet unnamed Ziola was waiting. Zoë and Zach placed her against a wall and shackled her hands and feet to the wall and removed her top. She'd then looked in front of her and seen a sort of ray gun pointed straight at her.

"You will use Bad Wolf to resurrect our species," stated the other male Ziola, who had introduced himself as Zed before commencing,

"No," Rose gasped out, finding breathing to be painful and fighting the urge to hold her chest in order to relieve the pain,

"Very well," Zed smirked, before pressing a button again, allowing the ray to scan her again. The pain was immense, and added to her already aching body, made Rose feel as if she was about to die. Beginning to feel dizzy, she choked out, "I _can't_! I'm not just saying it 'cause I won't, I really truly _can't_!"

Zed pressed the button again, making Rose scream out loud, much to her dismay and shame. "Please, I _can't_!" she pleaded, feeling tears begin to gather in her eyes,

"Very well. We'll take a break from this for the time being," Zed said, after a moment, "Zach, it's your turn."

Zoë took the hand of the man she had originally introduced as her uncle and the two walked out, leaving Rose and Zach alone. He walked up to her and gently ran his hand down the side of her face before tutting. "Oh Rose, Rose, Rose. What _do_ you look like now? And you looked so beautiful before,"

"Fuck you!" she spat,

"That's not the way a well mannered young woman should speak," Zach taunted, "Are you going to teach that sort of language to your baby?"

Rose froze. "What baby? I'm not pregnant!"

"Oh, aren't you? Why, haven't you and your darling Doctor had sex yet?"

"That's none of your business!" Rose retorted,

"Oh Rose, I'm sorry! Doesn't your Doctor _want_ you, pretty little thing like you?" Zach ran his hands across her bare stomach. She desperately tried to shy away but the shackles pinning her to the wall didn't let her.

"Of course he wants me. He showed me how much he does!" Rose blurted out, before realising her mistake. Zach simply raised his eyebrows and smirked.

"So, I heard you had a death in your family recently," he said,

"Yeah, my Uncle Jim," Rose said, cautiously, not sure where this was going, "He was on one of the trains that crashed last January,"

"I know,"

"How do you…" Rose's eyes widened. "You caused that crash. You killed him and a load of other innocent people! You _bastard_!" She fought the shackles furiously, wanting to tear this _evil_ alien limb from limb. "How _could_ you?"

Zach grinned maliciously. "Easy. All I had to do was inject the driver of the oncoming train with a special Ziola manufactured mind controlling drug and get him to ignore the next stop sign. Simple. Much like doing exactly the same thing to you earlier,"

"You _murderer_!" Rose hissed, between clenched teeth, feeling panic rise in her chest.

_I need to get out of here now! But how..?_

"It was fun," Zach said, "You feeling alright up there?"

"I dunno, feel like I'm about to faint," Rose murmured, closing her eyes and nodding her head forward slightly. She did in truth feel dizzy but not to the extent that she was letting on.

"Aww," Zach cooed, "Suppose I'd better take you back to your _luxurious _accommodation so you can sleep it off. Don't want you fainting in the middle of our little sessions. It would spoil the fun, you not being able to scream and all." His palm slapped a nearby button and Rose's shackles snapped undone, causing her to fall face first onto the stone floor. She knelt gingerly, rubbing her sore wrists before feeling herself being pulled up from behind, Zach gripping her firmly by the shoulders. She kept her head down, feigning tiredness as he captor pushed her out of the room and into the main hallway where the front door was.

_Now!_

Suddenly jerking her head up, Rose readied her arms in the defensive position before crashing her elbow back into Zach's stomach.

_Solar plexus_

She then stamped back on the side of his foot…

_Instep_

…before raising her left fist up to knock Zach's face…

_Nose_

…and then swinging it back down to hit him hard between the legs.

_Groin!_

Zach immediately released her as he bent over in pain. Rose quickly snatched up her t-shirt from where he'd dropped it on the floor and ran to the front door, thanking her lucky stars that it was an easy latch door and she'd had an obsession with watching _Miss Congeniality _when she was younger. She had watched it everyday for nearly a month before getting bored but she still came back to it from time to time.

She bolted out of the door and randomly turned right, not having any real idea where she was. Breathing shallowly, Rose ran as fast as her sore and bruised legs could take her, not daring to look behind her to check if Zach or the other Ziola were chasing her. Her heart dropped like a stone when she heard someone behind her shouting;

"Rose! Come back!"

Desperately looking around for a sign to tell her where she was, she noticed an alleyway to her right. Not seeming to have any other choice as the road ahead seemed to be purely residential, she took it only to find herself sprawled on the floor as she tripped over an unseen stone. Dragging herself to her knees, feeling her palms sting sharply, Rose tried to crawl forwards before giving up with a cry of despair as her body hurt too much and she was really started to get dizzy. Tasting something murky in her mouth, she spat out and was horrified to see blood mixed in with her saliva. Hearing running footsteps coming nearer and nearer, Rose curled herself into a ball, tears falling down her cheeks.

This was it.

This was the end.

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_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	16. Part sixteen

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**Thanks for the reviews, sorry it took some of you ages to read the chapter as fanfiction dot net was playing up again! Here's the next chapter, I don't know very much about medicine and stuff so sorry if I get anything seriously wrong in this and the next couple of chapters. I don't honestly know when I can update again as college is starting again tomorrow and I'm busy over the weekend. Hopefully it won't be too long though! Hope you enjoy the chapter!**_

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

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The Doctor burst out of the TARDIS door and looked around anxiously. He was on a suburban street with old, three storey houses surrounding him on both sides of the road. None of them looked particularly welcome and there seemed to be no-one about- not even the odd car lining the road.

Suddenly, a commotion caught his attention. Further up the street, a front door had been yanked open and a figure was stumbling down the path and then turning right, not really seeming to know where they were going. He strained his eyes; the figure was slim, of medium height and didn't seem to be wearing a top of any sort.

"Rose!" he yelled, suddenly recognising her, "Oh God, Rose!"

He began to run up the street, pelting along as fast as he could.

"Rose! Come back!" he shouted, trying to get her to stop. Unfortunately, all it seemed to do was make her run faster. The Doctor watched, his chest constricting as he saw her limping as she tried to get away, and he followed, seeing her suddenly disappear into an alleyway. He round the corner, panting heavily, to discover her curled up on the cold floor, trembling violently.

"Rose," he said, hoarsely, kneeling down beside her and placing his hand on the side of her face, biting his lip as she visibly flinched. "Rose, it's me, it's the Doctor."

He watched as she slowly opened her eyes, looking up at him hopefully through teary eyes. "You came," she whispered, a small smile appearing on her lips,

"I'm sorry," the Doctor said, tears appearing in his eyes as he took in her battered and bruised body, "I should have been here earlier,"

"You're…here…now," Rose said, shakily, "My…Doctor."

Her eyes closed and she seemed to go limp. His hearts in his mouth, the Doctor quickly checked her vitals and was relieved to find she was still breathing. She had just fallen unconscious.

"I'm so sorry, Rose," he whispered, picking her up and cradling her gently in his arms, trying to ignore the grimace that appeared on her face, telling him that she was in pain. He adjusted her carefully and began to stride back to the TARDIS.

As he passed the house where Rose had originally run from, he looked over and saw Zach standing there, watching him with a red but smirking face. Growling angrily, he fumbled for his sonic screwdriver, balancing Rose in one arm momentarily, before pointing it at the house. He pressed the button and immediately every door and window slammed shut and locked, effectively imprisoning the Ziola until he had more time to deal with them.

"Hold on, Rose," he murmured, walking as fast as he could without jolting her too severely. "JACK!" he yelled, as soon as he got close enough to the TARDIS.

The door opened and the pale American appeared. "Oh God, what happened?" he gasped, "Is she OK?"

"Does it _look_ like she's OK?" the Doctor snapped, "C'mon, help me get her to our bedroom!"

Jack nodded and ran ahead of the Doctor, opening doors wide so he could get through. They reached their destination quickly and the Doctor set Rose down with a sigh.

"Do you know what happened?" Jack asked, quietly, aware that he was on dangerous grounds with the Doctor,

"They tortured her," he said, tucking some of Rose's hair away behind her ear, "The bastards tortured her!"

Jack watched as the Doctor shakily took in several deep breaths. He knew this was the closest he'd ever come to seeing him completely break down. "Was it the Ziola again?"

The Doctor nodded. "I'm going to get some medical equipment from the lab. You stay here with Rose,"

"'K," Jack said and watched as his friend swept away. He sat down on the bed next to Rose. "I'm sorry," he murmured, taking her hand in his, "I shouldn't have let you go off by yourself." He sat and stared at her in silence before a loud thundering announced the return of the Doctor.

"Can you take us back to the Powell Estate?" the Time Lord asked, "Otherwise Jackie'll be screaming blue murder and I really don't have time for that now. Do you remember how to work the old girl?"

"Yeah," Jack nodded, before slipping off. Moments later, the TARDIS shuddered into motion.

Meanwhile, the Doctor was standing over Rose, waving a sort of scanner over every inch of her body. He cursed every time it beeped, meaning that it had found an injury of some sort, and checked the screen on the back of it which told him what was wrong. Finally, he was done and he tore off the little strip of paper that had been ejected out of the contraption before scanning it.

"What's the verdict?" asked Jack, appearing in the doorway, "We're back at the Estate, by the way,"

"Several broken ribs, badly bruised nose, black eyes, lots of bruising on her stomach, arms and legs… that's about it, really," he replied, without emotion, "Nothing _too_ serious. She'll just need to rest to get better,"

"OK," Jack said, feeling relieved that it wasn't anything worse, "How long has she been unconscious?"

"I don't know," the Doctor replied, honestly, "She was still conscious when I found her but only just. I think it's down to shock or her body trying to heal itself. We just need to keep an eye on her."

Jack nodded, staring worriedly at his sister in everything but blood. His musing was suddenly interrupted by a loud banging coming from the TARDIS door.

"Jackie," both men said together,

"I'll go," Jack offered.

The Doctor nodded his thanks and watched as the ex-Time Agent disappeared out of the room, leaving him alone with his Rose. He picked up a roll of bandages. "I'm just going to wrap this around your ribs," he told her, hoping she could hear her, "It should help them heal faster." He did as he had said before gently changing her into her pyjamas, knowing that she would be more comfortable in the soft cotton than in her denim jeans. He then carefully lifted her and slid her under the covers of their bed. He noticed some dried blood just under her nostrils, which must have been from a nosebleed.

"Be right back," he murmured, before darting into their shared bathroom for a clean sponge and a tub of warm water. Upon returning, the Doctor sat on the edge of the bed and dabbed the sponge over her face, cleaning away the blood and other muck from her face, neck and hands before just taking her hand and holding it.

Suddenly, the bedroom door burst open and Jackie Tyler appeared, her heavily made up face white and strained. She looked a lot older than her forty something years.

"How is she?" she demanded, "Jack told me everything that happened,"

"She'll be OK," the Doctor replied, reluctantly moving so Jackie could take his place, "She'll probably be sore and weak for a while but nothing too serious as far as I can tell,"

"How could you let this happen to her?" Jackie cried, looking down at her daughter,

"I'm sorry," the Doctor said, quietly "I tried to protect her, I really did. Do you think I _wanted_ this to happen?"

"It was my fault. I let her wander off, unsupervised," Jack admitted, sadly,

"No, it wasn't Jack," the Doctor said, suddenly recognizing this fact, "I should've realised the Ziola were still a big threat and taken more care of Rose,"

"You couldn't have known, sweetheart," Jackie said, looking at the Doctor in particular but aiming her words at Jack as well. She had suddenly noticed how broken they looked and realised they despised themselves for Rose's condition. Jackie could see just how much both of the men loved her Rose. With Jack, it was purely platonic but she knew he'd do anything for her daughter.

And that was enough for Jackie Tyler.

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The hours and then days slipped by and still Rose didn't wake. The Doctor spent every waking moment sitting by her side, holding her hand. He didn't sleep or eat very much. He just stayed there, holding onto his angel's hand as if he was holding onto his sanity. And perhaps he was.

On the Monday, two days after the incident, Jackie slipped into Rose's bedroom with a cup of tea to discover the Doctor had fallen asleep, his head on his folded arms next to where Rose was lying, her hand still securely gripped in his. Jackie quietly put down the tea, tiptoed out and called softly for Jack.

"Look," she whispered, pointing at the Doctor,

"Thank God," Jack breathed in relief. He had been getting worried that the Doctor was making himself ill by not sleeping. He had tried talking to him but the Doctor refused to sleep, even in the bed next to Rose. He was adamant that he had to stay awake in case Rose awoke.

"He really loves her," Jackie said, feeling a sudden lump in her throat,

"More than life itself," Jack answered, "She saved him from himself when they first met. He told me. He doesn't think she knows that but it's true. I think he'd gladly die for her. And her, him."

Jackie nodded before jumping as a 'phone began ringing. "That's Rose's mobile," she said.

They walked swiftly back to the control room and Jack picked up the vibrating 'phone from where it was still lying on the Captain's Chair.

"Hello?" he said,

"Jack? Where's Rose?" asked a tinny voice,

"That you, Matt?"

"Yeah. Where _is_ Rose?" he asked again,

"She's at home," Jack began, realising that her friends didn't know about what had happened, "She…she had another run in with the Ziola over the weekend,"

"Oh my God," Matt said, worry clearly in his voice, "Is she alright?"

"She'll live," Jack said, grimly, "She's still unconscious at the moment…"

"I'm coming over," Matt interrupted,

"Matt that might not be such a good…"

But the 'phone was dead.

Jack sighed and looked at Jackie. "We're gonna have company."

Sure enough, ten minutes later, there came a great pounding on the front door. The TARDIS' lights flicked crossly. Jack guessed she was a little fed up of people bashing on her door. "Sorry, old girl," he muttered, before opening it cautiously. His jaw dropped. "Oh God, Matt! You didn't!"

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The Doctor slowly came back into wakefulness after his unplanned nap. He lifted his head and smiled sadly at the motionless Rose. He wished she would wake up; it was killing him, her not being able to talk, laugh, hug and kiss him.

Suddenly he frowned as he heard a loud commotion coming from outside.

"You can't just go barging in, Matt! She's still unconscious!"

"She's my friend and I don't see you physically trying to stop me!"

"What the _hell_ is this place?"

"How is this _possible_?"

The door banged opened, making the TARDIS groan in annoyance again, and the Doctor stared, his hearts dropping. There, standing in front of him were Jack, Jackie, a worried looking Matt and… Kirsty and Lauren.

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**_Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received_**


	17. Part seventeen

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

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For a moment, there was complete silence. Then, suddenly, everyone began shouting at once. Kirsty and Lauren demanded answers to their questions, which Jack and Matt tried to tell them, in between Matt yelling about Rose, which Jackie tried to soothe him over. Only the Doctor remained silent, feeling shell shocked that two more people suddenly knew about him. Suddenly, he felt a light pressure on his hand and he looked down to see Rose weakly clutching his hand.

"Rose?" he asked, bending down closer to her, "Are you coming back to us?"

Somehow, despite the immense noise that they were making, the others heard his words and turned, almost as one, to face the bed. A sudden silence lay over the room, punctured only by the sound of breathing.

Rose squeezed the Doctor's hand again, this time more firmly, groaned slightly and her eyes flickered open.

"_Rose_!" everyone yelled, crowding around her and firing questions at the top of their voices. It was utter pandemonium and the noise was horrific. Finally, the Doctor had had enough. He stood up, still securely grasping Rose's hand.

"SHUT UP AND GET OUT!" he roared, startling everybody into silence, "No questions, no buts', just GO!"

Everyone nodded and began filing out until only Jack was left.

"I'll take them to the kitchen," he said, "Shall I tell Lauren and Kirsty?"

The Doctor nodded and sighed, rubbing the back of his neck in agitation. Jack gave him a sympathetic smile. "Keep us updated, yeah?" he said, before jogging after Rose's friends and mother.

"Are you alright?" asked a small voice.

The Doctor turned and smiled, before sitting down on the bed next to Rose. "Shouldn't I be asking _you_ that?"

Rose smiled slightly. "Seriously though?"

"I'm fine, how are you?"

Rose shuffled around in bed. "Everything hurts,"

"You got pretty bruised."

Rose nodded tightly before quickly asking, "What day is it?"

"Monday afternoon," answered the Doctor, "You've been unconscious for almost two days."

Rose's eyes widened. "Oh, what was all that before?"

"That was the sound of a very worried Matt and two extremely confused girls," replied the Doctor,

"Oh God!" Rose gasped, "Kirsty and Lauren? They've found out?"

"Certainly looks that way," the Doctor grimaced, "…No Rose, stay where you are!"

"I've got to go and explain!" she said, forcefully, awkwardly climbing out of bed and batting the Doctor's hands away. She took a few steps before suddenly crying out and tumbling to the floor. The Doctor immediately bent down and picked her up bridal style, intending to put her back into bed.

"No, no!" she cried, shrilly, thrashing around in his arms, her eyes tightly closed, "Don't touch me! Please don't touch me!"

Confused, the Doctor gently placed her back onto the bed straight away and watched with worried and puzzled eyes as she edged away from him and covered herself with the duvet.

"Please don't touch me," she begged again, trembling violently,

"OK, I promise I won't," he said, quietly, desperately worried now, "Rose, what's wrong?"

"N…n…nothing's wrong. I'm fine," Rose replied, her brown eyes wide and clearly full of fear and for some reason, guilt. She took in a deep breath, feeling reassured by the Doctor's promise- she knew he never broke them without good reason, not anymore- and stopped shivering as much. "Can you go an' get Kirsty and Lauren so I can talk to them?"

"Don't worry; Jack's sorting it," the Doctor answered, staring at her anxiously, "Rose, do you remember what happened?"

He watched as her face closed down and she bought her knees up to her chest and buried her face in them.

"No," she said, her voice muffled, "I don't remember anything."

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About three hours later, there came a sharp knock on the bedroom door and it swung slowly open to reveal Matt.

"Hi Doctor," he mumbled, walking in and standing at the foot of the bed, on which the Doctor was sitting on, leaning against the headboard. He put down his book and peered keenly at Matt through his glasses.

"Is she OK?" the young man asked, looking at Rose, who lay next to the Doctor,

"Yeah," he replied, not particularly wanting to get into a discussion with Matt about Rose's odd behaviour that he still couldn't make head or tail of, "She's sleeping now. Fell asleep about an hour ago,"

"Does she remember any of what happened?"

The Doctor shook his head, feeling apprehensive about the fact. He had tried to talking to Rose again after her first denial but she still swore she couldn't remember anything.

"Oh," Matt said, chewing his lip, "I came by to also say that me and the girls are leaving now as it's getting a bit late,"

"How did they take it?" asked the Doctor.

Matt grimaced. "They're freaked out," he admitted, "I think they're gonna need some time to think it over, like I did,"

"Alright," sighed the Time Lord, hating the thought that someone was scared of him, "Can you make sure they don't blame Rose for it?"

"Sure," Matt agreed, knowing from his mistake earlier that academic year that it wasn't fair to blame Rose for who the Doctor was, "I'm…erm…sorry about giving the secret away by bringing them here. I didn't think,"

"It's OK," the Doctor said, "Go on; Kirsty and Lauren will be waiting for you."

Matt nodded and walked out, still feeling guilty.

"Do you think they're gonna hate me now?" Rose muttered, making her lover jump,

"Why are you awake again so soon?" he asked, mock sternly,

"You were talking too loudly," Rose yawned, a small smile gracing her lips that instantly warmed the Doctor's hearts,

"Sorry," he apologised,

"S'OK," Rose said, drowsily, "Going back to sleep now,"

"Sweet dreams."

Rose grunted and instantly fell asleep. The Doctor carefully clambered off the bed and left the room, heading for the kitchen where he found Jack.

"Jackie's gone back to the flat," the former con-man told him as he collapsed into a chair, "There's no real point in her staying here. I told her I'd contact her with any change,"

"Thanks Jack," the Doctor said, meaning for everything he'd done in the past few days while the Doctor had stayed with Rose,

"No problem," Jack replied, "How's she doing?"

"Physically she's fine…" He stopped and shook his head before looking at his friend, pain evident in his eyes. "She won't let me touch her. She started almost having a panic attack when I held her earlier and she was trembling for ages afterwards,"

"Is it just you or do you reckon its people in general?" asked Jack, cautiously.

The Doctor shrugged helplessly. "I don't know but I'd hazard a guess at everybody." He took in a shaky breath. "I'm just terrified that the Ziola did something really bad to her to make her so scared of being touched."

Jack nodded gravely. He had been having similar thoughts.

"It's really worrying me," the Doctor confessed, "Her moods are strange. Most of the time she's like a quieter version of herself but then she goes all timid, especially when I'm trying to talk to her about what happened,"

"Has she cried at all?"

The Doctor shook his head. "She says she doesn't remember any of what happened but I know she does. Her eyes tell me so." He shuddered slightly.

"Maybe it's her way of dealing with things…? Y'know, her mind is refusing to accept it until it's ready to?" Jack offered,

"Maybe," the Time Lord shrugged, "I just think there's something wrong. I know Rose. I think she's hiding from what happened and I'm absolutely terrified that it's because of something seriously bad."

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The next two days passed painfully slowly for the occupants of the TARDIS. Rose stayed awake for longer and longer periods in between her naps and they made sure she always had someone to chat with, whether it was her mother, brother or lover. The Doctor observed her behaviour each time and while it pleased him that she was cheerful most of the time, it concerned him that she never cried over what had happened, even though her eyes were constantly haunted.

She still refused to let anyone touch her and he now knew this included her mother, Jack and Matt when he visited. Kirsty and Lauren hadn't come anywhere near the TARDIS since the first day. Rose wouldn't even let the Doctor hold her hand anymore which tore him up inside. He had never gone so long without physical contact from her when they were together and he was beginning to feel completely lost. After his initial attempt at trying to get her to open up, the Doctor had given up and hoped that she'd sort things out in her mind soon. He missed her.

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"_Rose, we're coming to get you!" taunted Zed, suddenly appearing in front of her, his face twisted into a leer, _

"_Rose, we know exactly where you are," Zoë sneered, emerging to her left._

"_Your Doctor can't save you now," Zach grinned maliciously, reaching his hand out to her from the right and swiping at her bare skin, "Nobody can save you now. No-one."_

"Doctor!" Rose screamed, petrified and straining to get away from Zach's wandering hand, "DOCTOR!"

_The three Ziola gathered in a semi-circle around her, staring at her cruelly and spitting. "Nobody can save you now, Rose."_

Rose jolted awake, sweat dripping down her face, to discover the Doctor, panting heavily, staring at her in panic and worry. He had heard her terrified scream and come running immediately.

"Doctor!" Rose sobbed, scrambling out of bed and making it three steps across the floor before her weak legs gave out beneath her and she fell to the ground, only avoiding an impact to her head thanks to the Doctor's fast reflexes. He knelt down beside her, holding her lightly by the shoulders, knowing that she didn't like to be touched. Consequently, he was surprised when she instantly grasped his shirt, pulling him closer to her and then resting her forehead on his chest, taking deep, shuddering breaths while shaking forcefully. After a few moments, the Doctor decided to try his luck and he carefully placed his arms around her. Rose went very still, while still trembling slightly and then moved closer, snuggling into him and slowly wrapping her arms around his body before hiding her face in the crook of his neck.

"I've got you, Rose," he murmured, "You're safe here with me,"

He held her tighter, suddenly feeling wetness on his neck. She was crying.

_Finally_

"Doctor, I'm scared" Rose murmured, trembling, "I'm scared the Ziola are gonna hurt me again."

The Doctor felt his hearts break, suddenly realising that she'd just admitted she'd been hurt. "I'll protect you, my angel. I'm sorry I didn't before,"

"I need you, Doctor," Rose sobbed,

"I'm here for you, I'll always be here for you, don't ever doubt that. I love you," whispered the Doctor, tears in his eyes. He held her while she sobbed her heart out, crying for what had happened, how scared she'd been, how much pain she'd been in and seen the Doctor in since he'd found her and just how safe she felt in his arms.

The Doctor just stayed there for her; a solid rock; a hand to hold and did his best to comfort her, stroking her hair, rocking her gently and murmuring soothing words into her ear.

"Love you," she hiccupped after a while, "Why…why do I always seem to be crying?"

"You've had some horrible things happen to you," he whispered, "It would affect even the strongest,"

"Not you, though,"

"Yes me. Look at me now."

Rose lifted her tearstained face and looked at an equally tearstained face. She gasped and traced he obvious tear tracks softly. "Why?" she asked, softly,

"I hate seeing you hurt so much," the Doctor admitted, taking her hand and pressing it against her cheek. Rose stared at him before laying her head on his shoulder with a sigh.

"Rose," murmured the Doctor, after a period of comfortable silence, "Can you tell me what happened?"

He felt her tense before she nodded.

"I can remember now… I always could,"

"I know," said the Doctor, simply.

Rose sighed before moving away from him so he could sit cross-legged on the floor, leaning against their bed. She sat in his lap, winding her arms securely around his waist and leaning her ear against his chest listening to the comforting double heart beat, and then she began.

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_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	18. Part eighteen

**A-Levels and Aliens**

**_Apologises for the short delay in posting. I've been busy and the internet's being dodgy! I went ice sliding last Sunday so now I know exactly how Rose is feeling physically as I kind of did a forward somersault over a not so safe safety barrier after coming down a snowy slope on an inflatable tube at a very high speed. I'm really aching and I have bruises everywhere! Anyways, hope you enjoy and please review. Think we might be coming to the end of the serious angst for this story but you never know!_**

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

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Rose first described the events that had happened just after she'd left Jack in the Camden Markets and the Ziola had kidnapped her right up until Zoë had taunted her and beat her up. She spoke clearly and confidently even when she talked about how painful it had been when Zoë had kicked her. She absorbed confidence from the Doctor who held her tightly in his arms, letting her know that he was supporting her through this. He had realized some parts would be difficult for her to recall and tried to convey to her that he was there for her.

"And then, after she left, I was left in that room for… I'd assume a couple of hours. I just sat there and thought, trying to ignore how painful it suddenly was to breathe,"

"She'd broken some of your ribs," the Doctor said, "I bandaged them up for you and they'll probably take a couple of weeks to heal properly. How are they feeling now?"

"Sore." Rose winced, gingerly placing her hands over them. The Doctor put his hands over the top of hers and interlinked their fingers carefully,

"What happened next?" he asked,

"Zoë and Zach came for me eventually and took me downstairs to another room where Zed- that's the other Ziola by the way- was waiting. They strapped me up against the wall and told me to get Bad Wolf to resurrect their species and when I refused, Zed pressed this button on this machine that was pointed straight at me and this ray came out and sort of scanned me…" She tensed up for a moment and when she spoke again, there was a sob in her voice. "It was so painful; Doctor and they kept doing it. I tried desperately hard not to scream but I couldn't help myself on the last time,"

"It's OK, Rose," the Doctor said, softly, running one hand through her tangled, unwashed hair, "I know how painful those scanners can be. When we were at Van Statten's museum, he used one on me… 'for scientific reasons' he said but all I know is that it hurt a lot."

Rose sniffed sadly and tightened her one armed grip around him. She wasn't looking forward to telling the Doctor the next bit. But she had to.

"Zoë and Zed left the room then," she whispered, "They told Zach it was his turn." She paused and closed her eyes, thinking about what happened next. The Doctor felt her start trembling again.

"Shh. I'm here, my angel," he murmured, squeezing her hand.

She tightened her grip before taking a deep breath and continuing. "He came up to me and ran his hand down my cheek and started saying stuff about how pretty I looked before." Rose stopped and took another deep breath. "I swore at him and then he tutted and said that he hoped I wouldn't be teaching that sort of language to the baby… Doctor, he said I was pregnant!"

The Doctor jerked, his mind going blank. He forced breath back into his lungs and willed his brain to co-operate. "Pregnant..?" He looked at Rose, who had gone rigid and was breathing hoarsely. "You… you _can't_ be, Rose," he said, "I checked you over with a sort of scanner before and it would have told me if you were,"

"But he'd just used that ray machine thing so wouldn't he have known from that?" asked Rose, shakily,

"No. Rose, we'd only made love for the first time less than two days before. It wouldn't have registered,"

"So, I'm not pregnant?"

"Nope, we can check it over with a human test if you want," the Doctor suggested,

"OK," Rose breathed, a huge weight seeming to lift from her shoulders, "Is…is it possible for me to get pregnant with your baby?"

"I think so," replied the Doctor, cautiously, "It's difficult though."

"Doctor?" Rose asked, after a minute, "Would… would you be pleased if it happened?"

The Doctor hugged her as she sat. "I'd be over the moon," he replied, honestly, "But let's not deliberately try just yet… that's if you wanted a baby with me,"

"If I ever have a child, I'd want you to be the father," Rose said, confidently.

The Doctor beamed and kissed her cheek gently. They sat curled up together in a companionable silence for a few more minutes until Rose remembered that she still hadn't told the Doctor everything. Her smile drooped and she sighed. "There's more."

"Tell me when you're ready," requested the Doctor,

"Zach told me something else," she said, wanting to get it over and done with, "He killed my uncle and all those other innocent people on the trains last January. He said he used the same mind control drug on the driver that he used on me."

The Doctor sucked in a breath. "I'm sorry,"

"I'm glad he told me," Rose said, making him raise an eyebrow in question, "It made me furious. I was so angry that I managed to ignore all the pain and just concentrated on getting out of there. An'…an' when he touched me up, it only made me angrier,"

"He touched you up?" the Doctor asked, his eyes almost emitting sparks.

Rose nodded, swallowing audibly.

"I _am going to kill him_!" he growled,

"I tried to get away but the shackles didn't let me," Rose sobbed, shaking again, "I'm so sorry!"

The Doctor swallowed his anger with difficulty before rubbing the back of Rose's hand with his thumb. "It's not your fault, don't ever think that."

She tilted her head upwards to look at him. "But it _is_, Doctor," she whispered, "I let him do it!"

"No, you didn't," soothed the Doctor, "You said yourself; you were shackled to the wall. You couldn't move. Please believe me."

Rose stared at him, her eyes blurry with tears that she refused to let fall.

"How did you escape?" he asked, deliberately changing the subject.

The corners of Rose's mouth turned up and she rested her head back on the Doctor's chest before telling him how she'd pretended to be about to faint and then how she'd used the SING trick that she'd learnt from the _Miss Congeniality _movies on Zach in order to escape out of the front door.

"I thought the Ziola were chasing me and I couldn't move anymore so I just collapsed in that alleyway. I thought that I was about to die," she said, quietly, "I thought I _had_ died when I saw you there. You arrived just in time,"

"I'm glad," the Doctor murmured, "I'm so proud of you, Rose, I truly am."

Rose snuggled further into him, closed her eyes and didn't reply. The Doctor kissed her head lightly before letting her fall asleep, safe in his arms.

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Jack Harkness knocked on his companion's bedroom door before entering quietly. He had learnt to do this over the past few days as he never knew if Rose was awake or not.

His first thought upon entering was that the room was deserted as the bed was certainly empty. Then, he looked around and noticed the Doctor's brown head appearing from one side of the bed. He walked around to discover him sitting cross legged on the floor with a fast asleep Rose Tyler wrapped lovingly in his arms.

"She's letting you touch her!" Jack blurted out immediately.

The Doctor nodded, a relieved smile on his lips. "She's got past it," he said quietly, in an effort not to rouse Rose,

"She tell you what happened?"

"Yeah," the Doctor confirmed, "They did some horrible things to her. She could have been a lot worse though. It's amazing just how well she's coped,"

"They didn't…" Jack asked, fearfully,

"No," the Doctor said, very relieved, "She said that Zach felt her up a bit."

The just-awake Rose snapped her eyes open and tensed at this.

Jack bit his lip. "Do you think that's why she wouldn't let anyone touch her?"

"Partly why, yeah. I also think that it was due to Zach tricking her into believing that she was pregnant,"

"Pregnant?" Jack gasped,

"She's not, she just believed she was," the Doctor said, flicking his hand to Rose's cheek to wipe away the tear that was rolling its way down it, "It's OK, Rose,"

"How'd you know I was awake?" Rose asked, hoarsely, taking his hand and tilting her head up to his so their eyes met,

"Your body went tense and you stopped breathing so evenly," he replied, with a gentle smile, "Do you think my theory about your touching phobia is correct? Incidentally, what seemed to cure it, in terms of me anyway?"

Rose thought for a moment while her two best friends watched her patiently. Jack had slid down the wall to sit opposite them.

"I do think you're right," she murmured finally and breathed in, "Before you came in, I had a bad dream and the Ziola were surrounding me and taunting me. They were saying that they were gonna get me and not even you could save me." She paused, looking at the Doctor. "Then, I woke up and the first thing I saw was you and I suddenly realized that you had and always would be there to look after me. And it was silly to be scared of touching you so I tried to get to you as fast as possible. Didn't work very well though." She gave a wry grin while pausing again in thought. "I guess I felt guilty for what Zach did and I couldn't stop him. And when I thought I might be pregnant, I think I felt scared of what your reaction would be and didn't think I was… I dunno… _worthy_ enough for you to touch me."

The Doctor squeezed her hand. "And you do know that the last bit is all rubbish, don't you? The first bit about me always going to be here for you is definitely true though."

Rose nodded with a smile. She could still scarcely believe that the Doctor loved her so much. Suddenly, she wriggled uncomfortably.

"My bum's gone numb."

The Doctor and Jack laughed. It was just so typical of life on the TARDIS that it could go quickly from being a lovey-dovey moment to a moment like right now.

"C'mon then," said the Doctor, "Let me help you up."

She clambered off his lap and he knelt up, groaning slightly as blood rushed back into his legs that had been stationary for a few hours. He had Rose put her arms around his neck and he slowly stood them both up, supporting her with his hands as her still weak legs trembled.

"There we go," the Doctor grinned, "What do you wanna do now?"

Rose screwed up her nose. "I want a bath and hair wash. I feel so dirty!"

"Rose, do you want me to cook you something?" asked Jack, standing up next to them,

"Yes please," she beamed, suddenly realising how hungry she was. She'd hardly eaten anything in the past few days,

"Want anything in particular?"

"Nah, surprise me," Rose looked at Jack dying to give him a hug but not feeling able to. He smiled at her, clearly telling her it was OK and to take her time.

"C'mon then, beautiful," said the Doctor, placing an arm around Rose's waist and helping her to slowly make their way to their bathroom.

Once inside, the Doctor set the taps running while Rose steadied herself on the sink with one hand and removed her pyjama top with the other before gasping slightly.

"What's wrong?" the Doctor asked, immediately,

"Nothing," she replied, quietly, "Do I need to take off these bandages?"

"Yeah, here, I'll do it," he replied, standing behind her and beginning to unwrap them. He noticed that she kept her head down and her shoulders tense while he did it.

"What's wrong?" he asked, again, placing his hands gently on her shoulders.

They began to shake suddenly and Rose began to sob.

"Look at me," she cried, "I've got so many bruises!"

The Doctor glanced down at the dark purple patch around her ribs and the other bruises on her arms and chest. "They're fading. They were a lot worse last Saturday, don't worry,"

"How can you bear to look at me?" Rose whispered, following his eye line,

"'Cause I love you, Rose. And that's never gonna change just 'cause of a few bruises that will be gone soon. I love you 'cause of who you are, not what you look like," answered the Doctor. He put his hand under her chin and tilted her head back up to look in the large mirror in front of them. "Look."

Rose stared at their mirror image as the Doctor gently cuddled her. "This is all I want," he whispered, "Just you and me. The Doctor and Rose. Together forever,"

"Together forever," Rise repeated, melting back against his chest, "Thanks, Doctor,"

"You're welcome," he replied, understanding that she was referring to everything that he had done for her over the past few hours, days, months and even years. "Now, how about that bath?"

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_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	19. Part nineteen

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

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The trio spent the rest of that Wednesday chatting, eating and generally keeping Rose's spirits up. Jack had alerted Jackie who had come panting around and had immediately run to her daughter, trying to smother her in a hug, only to find Rose shying away; desperately grabbing onto the Doctor's hand. Jackie had stopped, her face confused and hurt until the Doctor and Jack had hastily explained the situation to her; making pains to point out that Rose wouldn't touch Jack either and it would take her time to regain her confidence. Rose had sat there, on the Captain's Chair in the control room, hating to see her mother looking so hurt but still unable to reach out and hug her. She loathed the feeling but knew she'd get through it with her best friend's help.

On the Thursday morning, Matt came round for a visit during one of his free periods at college. Rose had hobbled to the control room with the Doctor's help and was sitting watching him tinkering. Her legs were slowly but surely growing stronger and she was beginning to be able to walk short distances unaided. She refused to stay in bed during the day as it completely bored her out of her mind.

"Hey Rose," Matt said, coming and sitting down next to her, "How are you?"

"Fine, thanks," she said, happily, "How's college?"

"Same as always. We're missing you in History. When d'ya think you'll be back?"

"Hopefully next Monday. I'm getting really bored,"

"I'm making an effort not to be insulted," remarked the Doctor, from his pit.

Rose reached out with her foot and gently kicked him. "You know what I mean."

The Doctor gripped her ankle and began to tickle the sole. "Yeah, I do,"

"Doctor!" Rose wailed, trying to stop giggling, "Stop it. _Please_!"

He grinned but stopped, instead massaging the ankle gently.

"I'm gonna be so far behind," Rose sighed, turning back to Matt,

"We've not really done anything too much this week," he said, "The teachers are aware of your situation anyway,"

"What about it?" Rose asked, biting her lip worriedly,

"I told them you got mugged and beaten up a bit," the Doctor reassured her, climbing out and taking her hands, "It's not _too_ far from the truth,"

"OK," Rose said, standing up and resting her head on his chest. He immediately dropped her hands and wrapped his arms around her in a comforting hug. "Matt, how are Kirsty and Lauren?" she mumbled, her voice muffled,

"They're waiting at the entrance to the Powell Estate," he told her, "They want to see you but…"

Rose sighed again before lifting up her head to look hopefully at the Doctor.

"Can I go out to see them?"

He hesitated and seemed to be wavering over his answer.

"Alright then," he conceded, "But don't be too long."

Rose nodded and he helped her walk slowly out the TARDIS and across the blowy forecourt followed by Matt, towards two waiting figures.

"Rose!" they both cried out happily, when she reached them,

"Hi," she smiled, leaning back against the Doctor, pointedly,

"Hi girls," he greeted.

The atmosphere changed suddenly as they looked at him. This was the first time they'd been face to face with him since they discovered the truth. "Hello," they muttered back,

"I'll come back for you in fifteen minutes," the Doctor told Rose lowly before giving her a squeeze and walking away. Rose perched on a stone barrier and faced her female friends.

"What's your problem?" she questioned, not unkindly,

"He's an alien, Rose," Kirsty said,

"And..?"

"He's not safe," Lauren insisted, "Not…normal."

Rose sighed. "How do you know that?"

There was silence for a few moments until she spoke again.

"There! You see, you _don't_ know that! And I can tell you truthfully that he's completely safe. I love him and I trust him more than anyone else in the entire universe! Ad it hurts me to see you two being scared of him!"

"We're not…" Kirsty interrupted,

"Then what are you?" Rose cried, "Tell me!"

"I don't know," Lauren said, eventually, "I'm sorry, Rose,"

"Look, think back to when you first met him up 'til you found out the truth the other day. What were your impressions?"

Her friends thought.

"I thought he was amazing," Kirsty confessed, "I was almost ready to pinch him off you,"

"Yeah, I thought he was kind of a real version of a knight in shining armour!" Lauren giggled.

Rose smiled before sighing again. "So what's changed? I know he's an alien but he's a _good_ alien, he's _my_ alien. You can't say you didn't think there wasn't something odd about him."

Kirsty shook her head. "We were suspecting something especially after the incident last November and he got here so fast despite the fact he was travelling and not meant to be back yet and he knew so much about those aliens."

Lauren nodded in agreement. "We didn't like to ask in case it was all a big secret or something, you know?"

"The Doctor's still the same person," Matt piped up, from where he'd been silently standing, listening to the girl's conversation, "I've learnt that,"

"Yeah," Rose said, sending a thankful smile at her friend, "I'm not expecting you to embrace him with open arms, just give him a chance. And… and I hope this doesn't stop you wanting to still be my friend,"

"Oh God, Rose, no!" Lauren cried, springing towards her, "_Of course_ we still want to be your friends! _Nothing_ could stop us wanting that!"

Rose smiled happily before shrinking back as Lauren tried to hug her.

"Sorry, I'm just having a few touching problems at the moment," she apologised at her friend's hurt look,

"'Cause of what happened?" Kirsty asked, quietly,

"Yeah," Rose nodded, "The Doctor's helping me through it though. Just bear with me. The Doctor's the only one I'll let touch me at the moment."

Her friend's nodded sympathetically before Matt glanced at his watch and swore.

"We're gonna be late for next period!"

"We better get going then," Kirsty said, "See you soon Rose, yeah?"

"Hopefully I'll be in on Monday," she replied, "See ya!"

Her friends waved cheerfully and set off at a run, trying to make the fifteen minute walk in five minutes. Rose doubted they'd make it. She looked around, mentally measuring the distance between her and the TARDIS. It wasn't _too_ far and she didn't particularly want to wait another five minutes for the Doctor to come and help her back inside. She could make it. She stood up unsteadily and began to slowly walk across the grey tarmac. Her legs trembled at every step but she persevered, determined to do this. The welcoming blue door of the TARDIS grew closer and closer until at last her cold hand closed over the wooden handle and she pulled open the door. The Doctor stood directly in front of her, hunched over the console, his back to her not having heard the door open. Rose tiptoed across the metal grating and quickly wrapped her arms around his waist, making him jump in shock.

"Hello," she murmured into his warm back, inhaling his familiar scent,

"Rose!" he said, turning in her embrace to face her, "How'd you get here?"

"Walked," she said proudly, moving her arms to loop around his neck,

"Well done!" the Doctor grinned, planting his hands firmly on her hips, "Everything alright?"

"Yeah, they still want to be my friends and I think they're gonna give you a chance," Rose said, moving closer to him,

"That's great,"

"Yup," Rose agreed, before reaching up and kissing him softly on the lips for the first time since her run-in with the Ziola.

The Doctor moaned in appreciation and gently deepened the kiss, making sure that Rose could pull away if she needed to, but she didn't. Eventually, the pulled away together and looked at one another, identical smiles on both their faces,

"I missed that," said the Doctor, kissing the tip of her nose gently.

Rose giggled. "Me too."

"What do you want to do now?" asked the Doctor, resting his hands on the bare skin that appeared between her trousers and top on her back,

"I want to… curl up with you and watch a good movie and eat lots of maltesers," Rose replied, playing with his nape hair.

The Doctor grinned. "Your wish is my command. You think of which film you want to watch and I'll go to the newsagents for some chocolates. Somebody ate all of our remaining stock."

Rose stuck out her tongue, making him laugh, before kissing him again. He released her, grabbed her purse and took off out of the door. Rose rolled her eyes. He always used her money!

Five minutes later, the Doctor returned to find her waiting patiently on the Captain's chair with a movie on pause at the beginning. He collapsed next to her, chucking the large bag of sweets onto her lap.

"What are we watching?" he asked, putting his arm around her as she settled comfortably, head resting against his shoulder, arm looped around his back.

"_Miss Congeniality_," she answered, opening the maltesers and feeding him one, "Thought I'd check if I got it right,"

"Bet you did," the Doctor said, sucking the chocolate off the sweet.

Rose took his right hand in her left and pressed play.

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Jack joined them about an hour later and sat next to them to enjoy the movie. He swiped a handful of maltesers from the bag that rested on Rose's lap and chuckled at her outraged cry.

A further half hour slipped by before the Doctor gently disentangled himself from Rose and stood up.

"I'm getting a drink," he said, "Anyone else want one?"

"Me please," replied both his companions.

He nodded and jogged to the kitchen, leaving Jack and Rose alone together.

"Where'd you go earlier?" Rose asked,

"Check up on the Ziola," Jack replied, "Unfortunately they were still alive."

Rose nodded but didn't laugh. She'd forgotten that the Ziola were still locked up in that house, courtesy of the Doctor.

"Sorry Rose," Jack said, after seeing her face,

"It's OK," she murmured, forcing a smile.

Her friend watched her for a moment. "Can I try something?" he requested, "You can stop me anytime you feel uncomfortable."

Rose nodded her consent and watched as he slowly placed his hand next to where hers rested on the seat. He inched it over until the sides of their hands were touching. Rose tensed but stayed calm, knowing that she wanted this and Jack wouldn't hurt her.

Jack next interlinked their little fingers and held it that way for a few moments until Rose's breathing had evened out.

"Don't forget to stop me if you need to," he reminded her,

"I'm OK," she breathed, a brave smile appearing on her lips.

Jack smiled at her before tugging their hands up to their eye line and carefully pressing their palms together.

"You still OK?"

Rose nodded, surprised to find that she actually was. She felt Jack curl his fingers through hers until they were grasping hands lightly. Rose beamed. She'd done it. Her grin was proudly reflected on Jack's face and on the Doctors'- who had come in unnoticed.

"Well done, Rose," he said, setting down the tray he carried and sitting next to her. He snaked his arms around her waist and pulled her onto his lap, taking care not to touch her ribs. She still held Jack's hand, now a little more firmly. The Doctor began to pepper light kisses on her neck and she shivered in delight.

"You're so strong, Rose," he murmured, his lips tickling her skin, "You're amazing…"

She turned to face him, a true smile being replaced by a smirk on her lips as she began to sing some familiar lines from the movie that they were half watching.

"You think I'm gorgeous, you want to kiss me, you want to hug me…"

The Doctor raised his eyebrows, a twinkle in his eye. Jack squeezed her hand, letting her know he was finding it to be funny.

"…you want to love me, you want to hug me, you want to smooch me, you want to…"

Rose was cut off by the Doctor's lips descending on hers. She moaned and clutched at his shirt with his spare hand.

This was bliss.

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_**You think this story's gorgeous, you want to review it, you want me to update soon..?**_

_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	20. Part twenty

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

* * *

"Eww," Rose moaned, holding her stomach and grimacing, "I think I ate too much chocolate,"

"Well, that's your own fault," said the Doctor, shoving her affectionately with his shoulder.

Rose groaned and looked at the Doctor with pleading eyes. "I feel sick,"

"Better go to bed then," he grinned,

"Don't think I can make it on my own."

The Doctor groaned this time. "I'm starting to suspect that you have me wrapped around your little finger,"

"She's had that since well before I met you," Jack commented from the console, "Glad you've finally caught up."

Rose giggled as the Doctor stuck his tongue out at their friend before sweeping her up in his arms, ensuring her arms and legs were safely wrapped around his neck and waist retrospectively, before carrying her off to their bedroom. She called goodnight to Jack as they left.

"Night guys!" he said back, "Don't make too much noise tonight. I need my beauty sleep,"

"He sure does," the Doctor muttered, setting Rose off giggling again, which lasted until he had dumped her on their bed and sat down next to her. She shuffled closer to him and ducked under his arm.

"You tired?" he asked, playing with the end of her long hair,

"Bit," she confessed, trying to cover a yawn unsuccessfully, "Been a long day,"

"It has," confirmed the Doctor. He shifted slightly to face her, staring straight into her eyes and taking her hands. "I'm so proud of you, you know that?"

Rose blushed prettily, unsure of what to say so she settled for squeezing his hands and smiling. The moment was ruined, however, five seconds later by Rose yawning widely.

"Bed for you then, miss," the Doctor said,

"Are you coming?"

"Sure," he replied immediately, "Need help changing?"

"Any excuse to get your hands on me!" Rose teased,

"Very true," the Doctor smirked, standing up and helping her to do the same, "I can't resist you,"

"Oh really?" Rose asked, raising an eyebrow playfully,

"Really," replied the Doctor before he pounced, kissing her lovingly but not going much further. He didn't think Rose was ready for that quite yet.

* * *

About an hour later, the two lovers lay in bed together, cuddled up. Rose let out a sigh and turned over slightly so her face was pressed into the Doctor's chest.

"Can't you sleep?" he asked, wrapping an arm around her back,

"No," she said quietly,

"You worried about something?"

"Yeah," she confirmed, "I can't stop thinking about them,"

"The Ziola?"

He felt her nod.

"What's gonna happen to them?" she asked, "I forgot they were still in that house,"

"Don't worry about it," the Doctor said, shuffling down so they were lying face to face. "And it's completely up to you what happens to them. You can decide their fate if you want to,"

"How'd you mean?"

"Well…" mused the Doctor, "They're effectively our prisoners now so it's up to us what happens to them. And I think that as they hurt you, its only right that you get to choose what happens,"

"Oh," said Rose, "What… what are my options?"

The Doctor rested his hand on her cheek. "There's the death penalty and believe me the Ziola have had it coming for centuries. Or we can exile them and banish them from Earth and other civilisations. Or we could always keep them locked up in that house. It's your choice."

Rose nodded, the unease clearly showing in her eyes.

"Think it over," the Doctor advised, "You come to a decision whenever you're ready. There's no deadline,"

"OK," she nodded, before yawning again, "I'm tired now,"

"Sweet dreams, my angel," he murmured, kissing her lightly on the lips before turning onto his back so she could comfortably lay her head above his hearts.

"G'night Doctor."

* * *

"Hi Mum,"

"Rose!" Jackie cried, opening her flat door to discover her daughter standing outside, "How are you?"

"I'm fine now, thanks," she smiled, taking a deep breath and stepping forward to engulf her mother in a hug. She hugged back tightly.

"Sorry I've been a bit weird lately and haven't seen you for a couple of days," Rose whispered into Jackie's neck,

"It's OK," she replied, softly, "Jack came up and explained what was going on. He's a nice young man,"

"Yeah, Jack's amazing," Rose sighed, "He's been ever so patient while I've been recovering,"

"Do you want to come in for a cup of tea?" Jackie asked,

"Yeah please," her daughter replied, "Hang on a mo, though." She went to the balcony and waved down at the TARDIS a few hundred feet below. The Doctor, who was standing in its doorway, waved back, blew a kiss and smiled when he saw her thumbs up. She'd not only managed to walk up to Jackie's flat completely unaided but she'd also successfully touched her mother again. His Rose was well on her way to a full recovery; an amazing feat as it had only been exactly one week since the entire horrible incident.

* * *

"Are you sure you want to go back to college today?"

Rose sighed and framed the Doctor's face with her hands. "I'll be fine," she said, softly,

"Do you want me or Jack to walk you there?"

"_Doctor_!" Rose moaned, her smile giving away the fact that she wasn't bothered about his protectiveness, "I'll be fine. The Ziola can't get me, can they? It's only a fifteen minute walk and college is secure,"

"I'm sorry," the Doctor sighed, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her closer to him, "I just don't want anything to happen to you,"

"It won't. I'll phone you if I need to though, I promise,"

"OK, I love you," the Doctor said,

"Love you too," Rose replied, with a sweet kiss, "See you later."

* * *

Rose's friends were overjoyed to see her again that Monday morning. They chatted with her, avoiding questions about where she'd been. She felt grateful to Matt, Kirsty and Lauren who had given them all the official cover-up story and specifically asked them not to mention it.

Currently, Rose was walking down a road filled with shops with her three best college friends at lunchtime.

"Yeah, so right, President Bush was talking to the Queen," Matt said, "He said 'I think I might turn America into a kingdom so I can be a king… or maybe I should turn it into an Empire so I could be an Emperor…'"

Kirsty took over, having heard the joke the week before. "So the Queen turns to him and shakes her head. 'Oh no,' she replies, 'I think you should keep it as country!'"

The quartet burst out laughing; Rose quickly regretting it as she held her still tender ribs.

"Oh, I just need to pop in here," Lauren said, motioning to a body care products shop on their right,

"OK," the other three agreed.

Matt and Rose waited outside, leaning against the shop window whilst Kirsty went in with Lauren.

"Just gonna check my messages," Matt muttered, pulling out his phone.

Rose nodded and watched the passing people without much interest. Without warning, she suddenly let out a choked gasp.

"What's up?" Matt asked, in concern,

"I… I think I just saw Zoë!" Rose gasped out, paling dramatically,

"You can't have," replied Matt, "You said she was locked up,"

"It looked like her!"

Her friend took one look at her before springing into action. She was beginning to breathe heavily and had gone very white. Matt shrugged off his coat and laid it on the grimy pavement before helping her to sit down, her head resting on her bent knees.

"Do you want me to call the Doctor?" he asked, kneeling beside her.

Rose nodded and silently passed him her mobile. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the breathing tricks that the Doctor had taught her in case she began to panic. She distantly heard Matt tell her that he was on his way.

Sure enough, five minutes later, the Doctor arrived on the scene to discover Rose in the same position with Kirsty and Lauren each holding a hand. Matt was nervously standing nearby, waving off concerned questions from passers by.

"Oh Rose," the Doctor muttered, squatting down in front of her and taking her clammy hands from her friends. She opened her eyes to stare into his.

"I thought I saw Zoë," she whispered,

"It wasn't her," he reassured her, "Jack checked and all the Ziola are still in the house and haven't left for over a week."

Rose exhaled heavily before he pulled her into a hug.

"You must think I'm completely paranoid," she mumbled sadly,

"No Rose," he replied, "It's gonna take you time to get over it. But you will, I promise."

She snuggled further into his arms and they remained locked in an embrace, Rose taking comfort from her Doctor, until Matt hesitantly told them there was only five minutes remaining of lunch.

"Do you want to come home or go back to college?" asked the Doctor, stroking her hair,

"Go back to college," Rose said, lifting her head to look at him, "Can't…_won't_ let them win,"

"That's my girl!" he smiled, "What do you have?"

"Just History," replied Rose, "With Matt,"

"OK, I'll walk you there." He helped her stand up and securely took her hand before looking around at her friends. "Thanks guys,"

"No problem," Lauren replied, with a genuine smile that told the Doctor she'd accepted him, "It's you Rose needs, not us."

The other two nodded in agreement and they set off quickly. Kirsty and Lauren left them once they'd reached college for their own lessons and Matt led the Doctor and Rose- who was wrapped around her love- to their History classroom.

"Hello Doctor!" came a surprised voice.

The Doctor turned to discover Rose's history teacher standing outside the classroom door.

"Hi," he said, "Hope you don't mind me being here but Rose thought she saw one of her… muggers at lunchtime and I wanted to make sure she got here OK,"

"I see," replied the teacher, her face creasing with sympathy. She paused for a moment in thought. "This is probably breaking some rules but as its special circumstances… well, I was wondering if you wanted to stay for the lesson so Rose knows she's safe. I'm afraid we don't have any spare seats but…"

"The floor will be fine," the Doctor interrupted with a smile, "Is that alright with you, Rose?"

Rose smiled and nodded, colour already flooding back into her cheeks from just being near to him.

Matt led the way into the classroom, heading for his and Rose's seats in the corner. The noise level dropped instantly and about twenty pairs of eyes settled on him. The Doctor grinned and acknowledged his head before helping Rose sit down in her chair and then settled himself on the threadbare carpet, his back gently toasting against the radiator. He took Rose's hand, kissed the back of it gently and turned his attention to the teacher, who he could easily see over the table tops. There were some advantages to being tall.

"Afternoon guys," the teacher began, "Before we start, I'd just like to point out that we have a visitor this lesson and it is, of course, the famous Doctor."

Mutterings rang out, many sounding excited and Rose's classmates craned to look at him.

"Hi, I'm Holly," said a girl, who was sitting to Rose's right. The tables were positioned in a semi-circle with corners- one of which Rose sat at with Matt to her left.

"I'm Charlotte," gushed another girl, on Holly's left,

"And I'm Ally!" said a third girl, on Charlotte's other side,

"Nice to meet you," the Doctor said, with one of his heart-stopping grins,

"Rose, he's better than I ever imagined!" Ally said,

"Lucky cow!" Charlotte joked,

"I am lucky," Rose said, smiling affectionately at the Doctor. He looked adoringly back, making all of her watching friends coo.

"Let's get going then," called out the teacher, "Right, last lesson we talked about some of the reasons for why the Restoration happened…."

It was a most entertaining lesson, with the Doctor piping up several times, contradicting the teacher by saying that that was complete rot and this is what _really_ happened. The class was in hysterics but Rose could see the teacher was beginning to get annoyed so she shut the Doctor up the only way she knew from past experience actually worked. She swivelled around, dropped onto her knees in front of him and said,

"Doctor, shut up!"

before grabbing his face and kissing him thoroughly, making him moan and the rest of the class whistle and hoot.

The teacher gave up in despair after that and let them go an entire fifteen minutes early- something completely unheard of her as she was famous for using every single minute wisely in her lessons. As a result, the Doctor received a range of thank you's from Rose's peers as they filed out until only he, Rose and the teacher were left.

"Sorry about that," apologised the Doctor, "Just trying to cheer Rose up, you know?"

"Seems to have worked," she replied, looking at Rose, who was beaming next to him, tucked securely under his arm, "It's quite alright, Doctor. I must admit I found some of your comments highly amusing."

The Doctor grinned and they bid their goodbyes, before the couple walked slowly down the corridor in comfortable silence.

"Doctor," Rose suddenly said, pulling him to a stop. He turned to face her, his eyes warm and encouraging.

"Doctor, I've made my decision. I think I know what to do with the Ziola."

* * *

_**OK, first of all, I want to make completely clear that I don't have anything against President Bush. That joke was simply the first joke that came into my head that wasn't completely perverted!**_

**_Secondly, I'm curious as to what YOU think Rose's decision should be. I've made my decision but it could be changed. Reviewers have made changes to the plot before. For example, _Scout Girl_ aka Genius came up with the Lauren and Kirsty idea and their reaction to the Doctor and _xXxRoses-are-reDxXx_ had a brilliant conversation with me, where we came up with Rose's reactions after the incident. So credit to both of them and go read their stories! _**

_**So the choices are:**_

_**A) Death Penalty**_

_**B) Exile and banish them**_

_**C) Keep them locked in the house**_

_**D) Another idea- and tell me what!**_

_**Until next time**_

_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received**_


	21. Part twenty one

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**My, my, my! You lot are a bloodthirsty lot! You'll have to read on to discover what happens. Thanks for all the reviews and I hope you enjoy. By the way, I've started posting AS Levels and Aliens on Whofic just in case you're interested!**_

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

* * *

The Doctor stared at Rose.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

Rose nodded, her face determined. "I can't let them win. I need to get rid of them or they'll haunt me like they did earlier,"

"I understand," replied the Doctor, embracing her, "C'mon, let's go home,"

"It might be a good idea, yeah," Rose smirked, "As the bells about to ring…"

The Doctor jumped as the bell pealed shrilly above him and immediately the previously empty corridor began to fill quickly.

"Rose," he whispered, grasping her hand and interlinking their fingers, "Run!"

* * *

The duo ran the entire way back to the TARDIS; Rose giggling helplessly and the Doctor's long coat flying up behind them. Finally they reached their magnificent time ship and Rose collapsed onto the captain's chair, breathing heavily,

"Maybe… maybe I shouldn't have run so far!" she gasped, "Don't think my ribs are feeling very friendly towards me at the moment,"

"I'm sorry," said the Doctor, giving her a glass of water, which she sipped gratefully, "I'd forgotten they were still sore. You don't seem to complain anymore,"

"I don't need to," answered Rose, pulling his hand so he'd sit down next to her, "They're a lot better. It's only when I do something like run or laugh too hard that I notice,"

"You're a fast healer," the Doctor said, "Maybe the TARDIS is doing something." He pecked her on the cheek before continuing. "I think we better talk about the Ziola,"

"I'll go get Jack," Rose said, jumping up and scurrying down the warren of corridors to Jack's bedroom. She knocked and entered to discover her brother lying on his bed with his eyes closed and an open book lying next to his hand.

Feeling a smirk rise up on her lips, Rose ran over the floor and leapt onto Jack's stomach, making him sit up with a jump.

"Rose!" he yelled,

"Hey Jack," she grinned, "How are you?"

"Bruised now," he grumbled, with a smile, "You and the Doctor just got back?"

"Yup," Rose replied, adjusting herself and leaning into him. He put his arms around her and kissed her hair. "The Doctor wants to talk to us,"

"Oh no! Has he found out about our passionate love affair?" Jack joked,

"You wish!" Rose laughed before scrambling off him and pulling him to his feet. They walked quickly to the Control Room where they rejoined the Doctor on the captain's chair: Rose squeezed between her two men.

"What's your decision?" the Doctor asked, grasping her hand tightly.

Rose bit her lip, the fun of the previous few minutes being replaced by a serious atmosphere.

"I want to kill them," she said, quietly, "I want to kill them so badly. I want them to hurt like I did and know what it's like to be beyond terrified." She turned to face the Doctor, tears in her eyes. "But I can't," she whispered, "I can't do it, I can't murder them. And I can't let either of you two do it either."

The Doctor immediately pulled her into his arms, trying to convey mentally that it was OK. He felt tears on his neck and her deep breaths as she tried to compose herself.

"It would be genocide," she continued, after a few moments, "They said they were the only ones left,"

"There might well be more," said Jack, "After all, we thought the Daleks were all gone but some survived."

Rose felt the Doctor's grip on her hand tighten suddenly and she kissed his neck in reassurance. He smiled gratefully at her.

"What do you want to do then?" he asked,

"Exile them," Rose whispered, "Take them somewhere, where they can't hurt anyone else and make them stay there. Then I can get on with my life and they can carry on with theirs, without being a constant threat to everyone else,"

"Then that's what we'll do," said the Doctor, "Jack, do you agree?"

The ex-time agent nodded. "It's the best plan of action. Are we going now?"

The Doctor looked at Rose questioningly and she nodded her head, determined.

"Alright," he said, standing up and fiddling with the control panel, "Jack, do you still have those electronic wristbands?"

"Yup, I'll go get three pairs," he replied, striding off.

Rose stood up and wandered over next to the Doctor. He put his arm around her.

"Are you sure about doing this now? We won't think any less of you if you want to wait a while."

Rose slipped her arm around his waist. "I'm ready now, Doctor."

He nodded and kissed the top of her head before pulling a lever, making the TARDIS whirr into motion.

* * *

Rose stepped out of the TARDIS onto the grey street. She shivered as an icy wind blew through her thin sweater. It had been warm back in the Powell Estate but it wasn't here.

A hand slipped simultaneously into both of hers and she smiled at the Doctor and Jack who stood either side of her. Without saying a word, the trio set off at a steady pace.

As they got closer to the house, Rose felt her breath constrict in her throat as all the bad memories of just over a week ago came flooding back. As if he knew what she was thinking, the Doctor softly stroked his thumb over the back of her hand, instantly calming her and squeezed her hand.

They reached the front door and opened it using the sonic screwdriver before trooping in.

"Well, well, well. Look like we have company," came a voice.

They screwed up their eyes to peer through the darkness and saw Zach coming down the stairs in front of them.

"Oh and Rose!" he said, "How lovely to see you again,"

"Hi Zach," Rose replied amicably, "How are you?"

Zach waved his hand. "So-so, you?"

"I'm much better," she said, a dangerous glint now appearing in her eyes, "No thanks to you or your friends. Where are they anyway?"

"Right here," came Zed's voice from the shadows.

"Right, glad you're all here," said the Doctor, in a falsely bright voice, "We're taking you away,"

"Where to?" Zed asked, suspiciously, leading Zoë out into the middle of the room. Zach came and stood next to them.

"Some deserted planet millions of miles away from here," the Doctor said, "So you can continue with your lives without bothering us or anyone else. S'not fair to leave you cooped up in here. Mind you, you did do it to Rose,"

"What if we don't want to?" Zach sneered.

The Doctor's face darkened. "You don't have any choice. According to article twenty seven of the Shadow Proclamation, as your captors, it is our duty, with the absence of any sort of legal jury and court, to choose your punishment. And this is it. Now, if you will kindly put these on." He stalked towards them and quickly clipped on one of Jack's wristbands on each Ziola.

"What are they?" Zoë asked, speaking for the first time. Rose wasn't sure if she was imagining it or not but she thought she could hear a note of fear in her voice.

"Electronic wristbands," explained Jack, a wicked grin on his face, "If you move more than ten metres away from us, then you get _fried_!"

The Ziola shuddered nervously.

"Are we ready to go then?" the Doctor asked.

Zoë and Zach glanced at their leader.

He shrugged. "We don't really have any choice," Zed said, in an angry tone, "My great, great, great grandfather was at the making of the Shadow Proclamation. He swore that all Ziola forever would respect and follow it. I refuse to dishonour our ancestors."

The Doctor was surprised. He hadn't thought that the Ziola alien race had a shred of morality in them. He nodded and he and his companions turned and led the aliens out. Jack quickly went behind them to ensure they didn't do anything untoward. He didn't trust them.

Up the front of the strange procession, Rose walked next to the Doctor. She felt tense, a little scared but overall proud of herself. She had faced the Ziola and had stood tall.

"You alright?" muttered the Doctor.

She nodded with a smile as they reached the TARDIS. She unlocked the door and led the way in.

Inside, the TARDIS had thoughtfully provided three seats along one of the walls, which they directed the Ziola to. They sat down and glared at their captors.

"Nice ship," said Zed, reluctantly,

"Thanks," replied the Doctor, "Gets me from A to B…"

The lights flickered slightly as if in protest. The Doctor frowned while Rose giggled, burying her face into his shoulder.

"I apologise," he said, raising an eyebrow, "Our ship is the best in the entire universe and I am fortunate to ride in her."

The lights flickered again but this time it appeared pleased. Rose laughed again and patted the console before doing the same to the Doctor's head. He grimaced at her.

"Come on then," he said, "Let's get you to your new home,"

"Which is _where_?" asked Zach, irritably.

"Oh I don't know," the Doctor replied, bounding over to the console, "Let's see where the TARDIS wants to take you, hmm? Mind you, she is _very_ attached to our lovely Rose here…"

Rose flushed with pleasure and the male Ziola frowned as they realised the implications of this. Zoë, however, looked like she was in pain.

"I _really_ need the loo," she announced quietly, when she realised that Rose was staring questionably at her,

"Tough," Jack snapped, from where he was fiddling with the console,

"No, I'll take her," Rose sighed, a little confused at what she thought she'd just seen in Zoë's eyes. It couldn't be… remorse?

"Are you sure?" the Doctor asked, leaving the rest of his sentence hanging unsaid in the air. He didn't need to remind her that the last time she and Zoë had been together, she had definitely come off worse. She still had the broken ribs to prove it.

"_Yes_," Rose replied, beginning to feel a little annoyed at just how protective the Doctor suddenly was. She knew he meant well but she really didn't need him getting _over_protective. "Gimme the wristband."

The Doctor nodded, not saying anything as he gave the correct band to Rose, who slipped it onto her own wrist. She then closed the gap between them and kissed him briefly on the lips.

"Still love you," she whispered, in his ear, knowing that he'd seen her emotions in her eyes.

He smiled before kissing her back. "I'm sorry," he murmured, "I'll try to tone it down a little,"

"S'OK," Rose said, "Let's talk it over later, yeah?"

The Doctor nodded and gave her a squeeze before she beckoned to Zoë and the two girls left the control room for the depths of the TARDIS.

* * *

"Here you are," Rose muttered, "I'll wait for you outside,"

"OK," Zoë paused and seemed to be about to say something else before changing her mind and going into the bathroom.

Rose chewed her lip in thought. What was up with Zoë?

A few minutes later, Zoë came out again and the two girls walked silently back up the corridor.

"Rose?"

She looked behind her to see Zoë just standing in the middle of the corridor.

"What?" she asked.

Zoë seemed to be struggling with herself. "Rose, I…I apologise for my treatment of you."

Rose's mouth hung open. Was this really happening?

"It wasn't my fault. Zed made me do it!" she continued,

"Yeah, right," Rose snorted, "Why don't I believe you, Zoë?"

"I'm telling the truth!" the Ziola cried, "I had to follow orders- Zed's orders! He's my leader. I had to do it. I didn't want to as the time we were friends did mean something to me!"

Rose frowned, unsure of what to say.

"Please believe me!" Zoë begged.

Rose just stared at her. "C'mon," she said at last, "We're gonna be there soon and it's safest to sit during landing." She turned on her heel and made straight for the control room and the Doctor. She slid under his arm and held tightly onto him, needing his reassurance as well as using him as an anchor for the landing. He simply kissed the top of her head and held her closer to him.

"Hold on tight," he warned, with a grin.

The TARDIS began to shake and threw its occupants around. It was certainly one of the worst landings that Rose had ever experienced but she suspected that it was done purposefully, as a punishment for the Ziola.

When they finally settled, only she and the Doctor were still standing upright, clinging onto one another and the console. The Ziola were flat out on the metal grating and Captain Jack was half on and half off the captain's chair. Rose burst out laughing and he glared at her.

"It's not funny!" he said, his lips twitching,

"Yes it is!" she giggled, before looking up at her Doctor's face, "Are we here?"

He nodded and pulled her over to the door.

"Where are we?" Rose asked, pushing it open and gazing out at a grassy field. It would have looked exactly the same as Earth except for the fact that the sky was a very pale purple.

"This is Zoasis," answered the Doctor, "This is…"

"You bought us home!" Zoë cried, from behind them, "We thought we'd never be able to return."

The Doctor smiled as Zed and Zach slowly stepped out, wondrous expressions on their faces. They looked at the Doctor.

"How?"

"You planet survived the Time War," he explained, "But I'm afraid that as far as I know, you are the only Ziola here."

Their faces dropped slightly.

"It is as we expected," Zed said, "There may be more of our race on other planets and maybe they can one day find their way home,"

"And if they do, you must promise not to revert back to your old ways of terrorising the universe," said the Doctor, sternly, "I have bought you home despite your atrocious treatment of my Rose and you owe us. If you break your promise, I will come down on you harder than a ton of bricks and you _will _regret it. Do I have your word?"

Zoë nodded immediately and Zach glanced at Zed before doing the same.

"As leader of the Ziola, you have my word," Zed said, quietly,

"Great!" said the Doctor, the seriousness of the past few minutes forgotten. He collected the electronic wristbands back in. "We'll be off then. Bye!"

"Good luck with it," said Rose, nodding at Zoë in particular. She couldn't forgive them for their actions but she was willing to be pleasant. She never had to see them again, after all.

Jack glared at them in warning as his goodbye before the TARDIS trio returned back to their time ship.

Once inside, the Doctor immediately set them back on course to the Earth. He hoped they hadn't been away too long. The ancient engines groaned into action and he turned around to discover Rose clutching a rail, looking a little dazed. He swiftly walked over and pulled her into his arms. She buried her face into his neck and let their closeness and his natural scent soothe her.

"They're gone," she whispered, "I'm never gonna have to deal with them again,"

"Yup," the Doctor replied, beckoning the watching Jack over. He walked up to them and wrapped his arms around Rose from behind so she was sandwiched between the two men.

"You OK?" he whispered.

Rose sighed and took one of Jack's hands in her own. "I'll survive."

* * *

**_Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received_**


	22. Part twenty two

**A-Levels and Aliens**

**_Apologises for taking so long to update but for the strangest reason, my teachers had given me loads of work to do. And by loads, I mean loads. Honestly, it's not as if it's my A-Level year or anything. The list referred to in this chapter, I have one exactly the same and I think it's only gonna get worse! Anyway, this is the penultimate chapter and I will do my best to write and upload the final chapter (gasp!) before I go away on Thursday. And then the sequel will begin. More details on that next chapter! Hope you enjoy as always and thanks for the reviews!_**

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

* * *

BANG BANG BANG!

"Someone's at the door," Rose said, lazily, from where she lay comfortably curled up in the Doctor's arms,

"Yes, someone is," he agreed, not budging a muscle,

"So where's our door opener?"

"You mean Jack? I dunno. Oh God, Rose! What are we going to do? I can't get up and go answer it!"

Rose huffed. "Fine, Mr. Lazy, I'll go!" She stood up with difficulty, slapped the Doctor lightly on the cheek and wandered over the door.

"That hurt! Right, I'll have you, Rose Tyler!" moaned the Doctor.

Rose stuck her tongue out at him before pulling open the door.

"Mum!" she said, in surprise,

"Where have you been?" Jackie demanded, "I get back from doing the shopping and find this ship gone with you an' all! I thought something had happened again…"

"We…" Rose tried to butt in but her mother was in full flow. She knew from experience that it was best to let her vent. Instead she lent back against the Doctor's chest as he wound his arms around her stomach- he had finally decided to get up and save her. In his opinion, anyway.

"And I thought _I_ had a big gob," he murmured into her ear. Rose giggled, which made Jackie stop jabbering.

"And what are you laughing at?"

"Nothing," Rose said, quickly, "Sorry Mum. We took the Ziola home so they won't bother us anymore. It was kind of a snap decision and we just took off. Sorry,"

"It's OK," said Jackie, "So those nasty Zola things…"

"Ziola," said the Doctor, helpfully,

"Yes them. They're gone? They're out of our hair for good?"

Rose nodded, watching her mother's face carefully. She looked relieved and glad.

"Good! Because if they'd stayed here much longer, they'd be in constant danger of getting a slap from me!"

The Doctor visibly winced.

* * *

Rose woke up slowly, rubbed her eyes and looked over to discover the Doctor, sitting in just his boxers, on the end of their bed. She crawled over the duvet to just behind him, before crossing her arms around him and placing a hand over both of his hearts. It might have just been her imagination but she could have sworn they began to beat a little faster.

"Morning gorgeous," he said, sleepily,

"Morning handsome," she replied,

"Glad you've finally realised this."

Rose laughed and leant her forehead on his shoulder and then rubbed her cheek on his bare back. "Mmm, your skin's soft," she murmured, before lightly kissing it,

"Like a baby's bottom,"

"Can't say I know what that feels like," Rose said, before twisting around and laying her head on the Doctor's lap. She smiled up at him and he grinned lovingly back, reaching down to twirl a lock of her long golden hair around his fingers.

"I think it's quite dangerous just how much I'm in love with you," the Doctor murmured, "If we ever got separated, I think I'd die,"

"Never happen," Rose replied, tracing his lips with her fingers, "No matter what happens, we'll always be together."

The Doctor gently kissed her fingertips before he sank back onto the bed and they lay in companionable silence for a few minutes.

"Doctor?" Rose asked, after a while, "Why'd you do it?"

"Hmm? Do what?"

"Why'd you take the Ziola back home instead of… I dunno… some dead planet?" she said.

The Doctor gazed at her for a while, appearing to think his answer over first. "I did it because… because I could and because there seemed to be some sort of change in them. I could tell that they might be different so I had to give them a chance,"

"You gave them a second chance?"

He nodded, with a small smile. "Only because of what I could see. I might be proved wrong, but I hope not,"

"I think your instinct was right," Rose said, "When I took Zoë off to the bathroom, she apologised to me."

The Doctor sat up with a jerk. "She did?"

"Yeah, I thought she was messing with me at first," said Rose, sitting up too and facing him, "But something told me that she was telling the truth,"

"Well those Ziola just keep on surprising me," the Doctor said,

"Yeah," Rose replied, straddling his outstretched legs with a grin, "But I just wanna forget about them now and concentrate on…other stuff,"

"What did you have in mind?" the Doctor grinned back, pulling her closer to him by wrapping his arms around her waist.

Rose kissed her way across his chest before glancing back into her Doctor's eyes, which were clouded with desire. "The only person I ever have in mind," she purred, "You."

* * *

Much later, Rose rushed off to college in time for her second lesson of the day. Luckily, their excursion had only taken them just over one Earth day so she hadn't missed too much. All the same, she came home later that day and the following few days, almost bent over with extra work she had to catch up on. She sighed miserably at the enormous list of work to be done that was lying on her desk.

"Hey honey, what's up?" asked Jack, peering in through the doorway. Rose looked up and smiled tiredly.

"Nothing much," she said, "Just got loads to do after all my days off and I bet it'll take me ages."

Jack crossed over and pulled her into his arms. "We'll give you a hand if you like. Just relax."

Rose grinned at him. "Yes, sir,"

"C'mon, the Doctor's out getting chips," Jack told her, before putting an arm around her shoulders and propelling her into the corridor. "How many weeks you got left before your next holiday?"

"Week and a bit," she replied, "Then two weeks holiday, four more weeks at college, five weeks of exams and then we can go travelling again! I can't wait!"

* * *

The remaining week of the Spring Term passed quickly and busily and Rose was thoroughly glad to collapse on top of the Doctor on the captain's chair, a few days before Good Friday.

"Hey, person here!" he cried, reaching out quickly to steady Rose as she threatened to slip off,

"I know," she said, cuddling into him. "S'why I chose here,"

"Is that what I am now? Personal seat and pillow of Rose Tyler?"

"Mmm hmm," she agreed, "The best."

The Doctor preened and held her closer. "Got any plans for your holiday?" he asked her.

She jerked up and stared at him. "Aren't we going travelling again, like we have before?"

"It's entirely up to you," the Doctor answered, "I was just wondering if _you_ didn't want to as you keep moaning about revision and how it would be a good idea to start it soon,"

"I'll need to," Rose grumbled, "I've got so much of it. _Why_ did I do four A-Levels this year? It's alright for Matt and Lauren and Kirsty. They only have exams in three subjects but _oh no_ I have to go and do four!"

"Well, it's not like you have to exactly revise for French,"

"Doctor," Rose said, "Don't say that. Sometimes a girl just likes to moan,"

"Yes Rose," he replied in a teasing voice, "But the problem is, you are _always_ moaning."

Rose poked him. He poked her back.

"Do you wanna start something?" she demanded.

The Doctor stared at her, his hands gently cupping her cheeks. "I thought we already had something."

Rose breathed out as his face edged closer and closer to hers. When their lips were millimetres apart, he grinned suddenly and began to furiously tickle her. She shrieked in surprise and then laughter before slipping sideways onto the seat beside them, squirming away from the Doctor's fingers. He immediately fell onto her, effectively pinning her down with his body as he continued his death through tickling on her. It was too much fun.

* * *

The TARDIS trio decided on travelling for a few days, returning briefly for Easter Sunday and then taking off again for a further week, this time inviting Jackie along with them. The Doctor and Jack felt like they had to say thank you for her putting up with them in the past year and Rose just wanted to spend time with her mother and take her to places she'd only ever dreamt of visiting; never having had enough money. Rose was uncomfortably aware at how fast time was passing and it wouldn't be long before she left her mother behind. The four of them had a fantastic time, visiting almost every continent on the planet before they returned home to the Powell Estate. There was a week remaining of the holidays and Rose began the long, arduous task of her revision; in between going out places with her friends, mother and the Doctor and Jack.

Term began again in earnest with the teachers piling on more and more work as the exams got closer. Rose bore it patiently knowing that she had opted for it.

A few days before the end of April, Rose awoke to discover the Doctor and Jack inching into the bedroom, carefully carrying trays loaded with breakfast and colourfully wrapped parcels.

"Breakfast in bed for the birthday girl!" the Doctor said, putting down his tray on a table that had appeared at the side of the bed, before collapsing next to her. "Happy birthday, my angel," he said, giving her a long kiss,

"Thanks," she smiled, taking in the sight and odour of the breakfast, "I take it Jack did the cooking- it looks edible."

Jack laughed and sat cross legged on the end of the bed before Rose beckoned him to sit next to her. He greeted her with a hug. "Happy birthday, honey,"

"Thanks. So, did he make the breakfast?"

"He helped," Jack said, chuckling at the Doctor's pout, "C'mon, the food's getting cold. Doctor, hand it over!"

Rose turned to face her lover, who was still scowling at her insult.

"Doctor…" she said, "Alright, I'm sorry. Your cooking skills aren't that bad!"

He grinned suddenly. "Ha! Knew I could get you to say that!"

Rose elbowed him. "That wasn't very nice. And on my birthday too!"

The Doctor smirked before passing some toast to Jack and then wrapping his arm around Rose. "Are you hungry?"

"Starving," she replied, "Gimme some toast!"

"Alright," he complied, before reaching out for another piece and then taking a huge bite out of it and passing it to Rose. "What are you doing today, then?"

Rose nibbled at the edge of the toast. "Well, college obviously and then me and my friends are going clubbing later. D'ya wanna come?"

"Might do, yeah," the Doctor answered,

"Were _you_ planning on doing something with me?" she asked, suddenly realising he might have had previous plans for her,

"Might be, yeah," he replied, "But not until tomorrow,"

"What are we doing?"

The Doctor's eyes sparkled. "It's a surprise. You'll have to wait and see,"

"Doctor…" Rose moaned, displaying her puppy dog eyes,

"Just wait and see!"

"Jack?"

"Nu uh. I'm not telling you either!" he laughed,

"Are you coming with us?" Rose asked, trying to deduce what the surprise could be,

"Nope,"

"Oh! Then you've got to come tonight!" Rose urged,

"OK, I promise."

Rose grinned and settled back against the pillows. "Bring on tonight then!"

* * *

"Blimey Rose, you look gorgeous!"

Rose spun around to discover Matt staring at her from just outside the entrance to the club.

"Thanks Matt," she smiled, walking over to him,

"Seriously, I reckon you're gonna be fighting off the blokes tonight!" he continued, "Are the Doctor and Jack coming?"

"They said they'll be along later," said Rose, "Hey guys!" She waved at Kirsty and Lauren who had just arrived. "Let's go in."

They got into the short queue that had already gathered outside the doors. It wasn't the same club that they had visited before with Zoë as Rose didn't want to ruin her special day by bringing back bad memories. Besides, this club had only opened the previous weekend and it was supposed to be great. She was sure they'd have a good time.

* * *

Almost two hours later, the four friends were busily dancing on the floor to some fast tracks. The Doctor and Jack had yet to arrive but Rose didn't worry.

"I'm going to see if the DJ will put a song on for me," she shouted, above the music, "Be back in a sec."

Her friends nodded and she dodged around other dancers as she made her way over to the DJ's stage.

Suddenly, she heard a loud bang before a noisy klaxon blared out into the room and water began to cascade from the ceiling. The clubbers began to scream and shout as they got wet and slowly realised what was happening.

The club was on fire.

And the fire was spreading very quickly.

Straight towards Rose.

* * *

**_Sorry, I couldn't resist..._**

_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gratefully received.**_


	23. Part twenty three

**A-Levels and Aliens**

_**And here is the final chapter- I can't believe it! I really hope you've enjoyed reading this story and if you'd like to leave your final verdict in a review, it would be very much appreciated. Please enjoy!**_

_**Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me**_

* * *

"What time is it?"

"Erm…" Jack Harkness checked his watch before continuing, "Just past nine. We've still got a few hours,"

"Yeah, I know," the Doctor replied, "Jackie was surprisingly easy to convince,"

"She's not so bad," said Jack, "I don't see why you're so… _frightened _of her sometimes,"

"First time I ever met her… no, wait, it was the second time, after I'd accidentally brought Rose home twelve months later instead of twelve hours, she slapped me and it _really_ hurt," said the Doctor, wincing at the memory, "And then she did it again when I came back for Rose last year."

Jack snickered softly. "You're scared of her 'cause she's slapped you?"

"No! I'm _wary _of her because she can take Rose away from me and I couldn't bear that." The Doctor paused. "Plus, she tried to come on to me when we first met. Now _that_ was scary!"

Jack grinned and was about to come up with a sarcastic reply when he stopped and frowned.

The Doctor stopped as well and looked questioningly at him. "What's wrong?"

"Can you hear screaming?"

The Doctor listened carefully before slowly nodding his head. "Tell me that I'm wrong but I've got a horrible feeling that they're coming from that building down there… that building which just happens to be the club…"

The two men looked at one another before gasping.

"ROSE!"

And then they ran.

* * *

Outside the club, there was a heaving mass of scantily clad people all milling around, shouting anxiously. The Doctor and Jack charged in and started desperately hunting for Rose and her friends.

After a panic-filled minute, the Doctor grasped Jack's arm.

"I can't see her. I'm gonna go inside and search there. You keep searching; don't come in after me!"

Jack nodded and continued his frantic search as the Doctor disappeared back into the crowd.

"Jack!" he suddenly heard, "JACK!"

He spun around to discover Matt and the girls fighting their way through the throngs.

"Are you OK?" he asked, "Where's Rose? Is she with you?"

"No," said Kirsty, "She left us to ask the DJ to change the track and then there was a loud bang and the fire alarm started going off. We tried to find her but the club officials began herding us out so we just hoped we'd find her out here. Where's the Doctor?"

"He's gone inside to see if he could find her," Jack explained, "C'mon, let's keep searching,"

"I'll try phoning her again," Matt said, reaching for his 'phone, "We tried before but no-one answered…"

* * *

The Doctor sneaked in through the main entrance when none of the club officials were looking. They were too busy waiting for the emergency services crew to arrive and checking that everyone was alright.

Inside, the fire was out as a result of the sprinklers but all the lights had blown and there was thick smoke everywhere.

"Rose!" he shouted, "Are you in here?"

He strained his ears, listening out for any reply before shouting again. This time he thought he heard a weak answer and then a spout of coughing.

"Where are you?" he called, carefully making his way to the centre of the deserted room and looking blindly around,

"Here!" he heard her cough, "Doctor!"

"I'm coming, hold on," he replied, before frowning as he suddenly heard some tune. It was Rose's ring tone, he deduced and it was helping him to locate her. He followed the shrill sound across the smoke darkened room until he suddenly saw a hunched form on the floor in front of him. He fell to his knees beside her.

"Are you alright?" he asked Rose,

"Can't… breathe!" she gasped, choking in the smoke,

"C'mon then. Let's get out of here." He easily picked her up in his arms and they began the slow journey through the club room.

"Aren't…you…supposed…to…stay…near…the…ground…in…a…fire?" Rose mumbled, pressing her mouth against his shoulder in an attempt not to inhale anymore smoke,

"Technically, yes," he replied, "But I've got a bi-cardial circulatory system. Here."

He nudged her face up off his shoulder and locked lips with her and breathed into her mouth, whilst holding her nose. Clean air suddenly rushed into Rose's lungs and she exhaled gratefully, tightening her hold on the Doctor. They stayed in this position until the Doctor pushed open the nearest emergency exit and took them outside. He put Rose down and she immediately bent over, coughing violently and taking deep breaths. The Doctor rubbed her back until she finally looked back up at him, her eyes watering.

"Bi-cardial circulatory system?" she asked.

He nodded. "Two hearts. How'd you think I managed to stay so long in that gas filled dungeon in 1869 Cardiff while you and Charles Dickens couldn't breathe?"

Understanding suddenly dawned in Rose's eyes before she sighed. "Why do bad things always seem to happen to me?"

The Doctor shrugged. "Perils of travelling with me or maybe this was just a coincidence. I'm sorry."

Rose looped her arms around his neck and brought her face close to his. "Doctor, you're worth all the perils. I'd rather have something like what just happened happen everyday than have to live without you. I love you,"

"I love you too, Rose," the Doctor replied, kissing her gently, "Though I'd rather none of those things happened and you still stayed with me forever,"

"It's a promise," Rose said, "Although I really don't mind the bad things happening as long as you keep coming to save me. Thanks,"

"Entirely welcome, my angel."

Rose smiled at him before beginning to laugh. He raised an eyebrow and Rose choked out, "That has got to be the weirdest way of breathing in a smoke filled room that I've ever experienced!"

The Doctor just grinned as Rose began laughing hysterically again.

* * *

"Oh God Rose, you're alright!" Lauren shouted, rushing to hug her friend as soon as she and the other three spotted the Doctor and Rose,

"Yup," said Rose, "Nice little adventure,"

"I swear you're gonna give me a heart attack one day, sis," Jack said, hugging her tightly. Rose smiled at him.

"How come you didn't come out?" asked Matt, "Did you have an accident or something?"

"I think I might have blacked out for a few minutes and then I couldn't find my way out," Rose explained.

The Doctor took her into his arms. "I'll check you over back at the TARDIS," he offered, "Shall we head back there now and continue with the party?"

Everyone nodded in agreement and they headed off.

* * *

Rose was fine, the Doctor discovered and it wasn't long before they rejoined the others back in the Control Room. Jackie had joined them shortly after their return, bringing with her a large birthday cake. The six of them sang 'Happy Birthday' to Rose very loudly before putting music on and having a fantastic time dancing, chatting and eating too much cake. Rose danced with everyone, especially enjoying a long slow dance with her Doctor. The party ended at just before midnight and Jack was a gentleman, walking Lauren and Kirsty home to ensure their safety, along with Matt. The Doctor and Rose, in the meantime, went to bed.

* * *

"Doctor, where are we going?" Rose giggled, as he guided her through the TARDIS having put a blindfold over her eyes.

"Just wait and see. It won't be long!" the Doctor laughed. He had his arms around her, making sure she didn't bump into anything before he pulled open the TARDIS door and led her outside. He smiled: everything was going perfectly to plan. As soon as Rose had come back from college that Friday afternoon, he'd whisked the TARDIS into outer space, leaving Jack back on Earth. He was going to stay with Jackie over the weekend and call his friends home on Sunday night.

"Can I see now?"

The Doctor took a final look around before carefully untying the blindfold and then he wrapped his arms around her waist, listening to Rose's gasp of delight as she took in the scene before her.

They were standing on the edge of a sandy beach, looking out to sea with an enormous full moon set in a deep purple sky full of twinkling stars. It took her breath away.

"Where _are_ we?"

"This is a planet called Majestica, situated in the Scarlet System. It's very similar to Earth with a single moon and beaches but the climate is warmer. Do you like it?"

Rose turned to look at him, the love shining clearly from her eyes, "I love it. It's so amazing. Thank you so much!"

"It's not nearly over," the Doctor said. He darted back into the TARDIS briefly before reappearing with a wicker basket in his hand. He took Rose's hand with his other one and the two of them wandered down the dunes onto the deserted beach. The Doctor laid a large chequered blanket out, near to the shoreline and he sat on it, pulling Rose down to snuggle into him. He then opened the basket and pulled out a selection of food and drink; before setting it out in front of them.

"Happy birthday, my angel," he said, quietly, kissing Rose's hair.

Rose tucked her arms further around his waist and leant her head against his firm chest. "This is the best birthday I've ever had," she sighed, as they stared out at the night sky, "I'm so lucky. You're the most incredible person in the entire universe and I love you to bits,"

"The feeling is entirely mutual," the Doctor replied, looking at her with his warm chocolate brown eyes. She stared at them, getting lost in the pools. Rose could hardly believe how much he loved her and she loved him. She never wanted it to end. And it never would.

* * *

The following weeks and months passed quickly.

An inquiry was held into why there was a fire at the new club and it was found that one of the speakers hadn't been wired properly and consequently exploded, sending a shower of sparks over the carpet and setting it on fire. Rose could have attempted to sue the club but she immediately decided not to. There was no point; she was unhurt- largely thanks to the Doctor.

Almost straight after her birthday, Rose finished college for study leave and her A-Level exams began. She worked hard and conscientiously and got through them, helped along by her friends and family. A week before the end of her exams, the Doctor took her out to a posh restaurant in central London to celebrate their first anniversary as it had been exactly one year since the Doctor came back for Rose and they had admitted their feelings for one another. A lot had happened in that year.

A week later, the Doctor and Jack joined the almost ex-college students on a night out to their favourite local pub to celebrate the end of exams and college. They had a fantastic time and made a great deal of noise all evening.

A few days after that, the TARDIS trio set off on their adventures again with Jackie on stand-by to call them back for Result's Day in August. The Doctor kept his promise that he had made the previous October after a fun and violent pillow fight with Jack and Rose and took them to the planet Barcelona. His two companions were delighted with the native dogs and couldn't stop laughing when they saw that they didn't have noses. The Doctor had to quite firmly prevent Rose from bringing one back on board, telling her it simply wouldn't be fair on the poor creature. And then he kissed her.

Jackie's call came all too soon and they returned almost reluctantly to the Powell Estate. After a reassuring cuddle from the Doctor, Rose walked to college slowly; the butterflies swarming in her stomach. She greeted her friends and then they nervously went to get their long awaited results.

* * *

Rose did extremely well with two A's and two B's in her subjects. She was overjoyed and rushed off to find her friends.

"Kirsty?" she asked, seeing her friend staring down at the piece of paper that the individual results were printed on, "How'd it go?"

Kirsty looked up slowly before her face broke into a grin. "I did it!" she cried happily, "I can go to Liverpool!"

Rose shrieked and jumped onto her friend, engulfing her in a hug and shouting congratulations. Matt and Lauren also joined in after they'd arrived and found out the good news. Both of them had done well also and got into their universities of choice. Lauren was off to study accountancy and Matt was doing a Law course. They were all looking forward to the future.

"Are we ever gonna see you again?" Lauren asked, a little while later,

"Oh yeah," Rose nodded, "I promise I'll see you again. I'll still come back to see my Mum so I'll pop around then. You're not getting rid of me that easily!"

Her friends grinned and then simultaneously hugged her.

"We're really gonna miss you," Kirsty said, sadly,

"I'll miss you guys as well," Rose said, "But you can still call me on my mobile. It doesn't matter where I am in the universe, I will pick up." She paused for a moment before continuing. "Unless of course, I'm currently running away from aliens at the time. Then I'll have to call you back."

Her three friends laughed before sobering up. They knew this was goodbye.

"Well, take care of yourself," said Matt, gruffly, "And make sure the Doctor looks after you or I'll be having words with him."

Rose managed a shaky smile, willing the tears in her eyes to not fall. "Well, I guess I better be off now," she said, "The Doctor an' Jack will be waiting,"

"See you soon, then," Kirsty replied,

"Yeah, have loads of fun and don't forget about us," smiled Lauren,

"I couldn't," Rose promised, smiling gratefully at each of them before saying a final goodbye and turning to leave through the college gates.

College and her A-Levels were over.

* * *

_**I'm not sure about the bi-cardial circulatory system- it has been mentioned in series one but I was doing some guesswork. And please don't try the breathing thing. It wont work! Well it might but I doubt it!**_

_**Review please. Constructive criticism is gratefully received**_

_**

* * *

**__**The Sequel**_

_**Introducing 'Degrees and the Doctor'**_

_**The Doctor, Jack and Rose have to go undercover at the University of Mars, as a lecturer, a janitor and a student retrospectively. What fun and horrors will they have?**_

_**Summary will be changed once I've sorted out the entire plot.**_

_**COMING SOON TO A COMPUTER NEAR YOU!**_


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